Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced Monday that he would accompany President Obama to Pearl Harbor, making him the first sitting Japanese leader to visit the Hawaiian naval base since the end of World War II. Abe told reporters that he will visit a memorial at the site on Dec. 26 and 27. “This will be a visit to console the souls of the victims," he said. Alongside Abe, Obama visited the site of the U.S. atomic bombing on Aug. 6, 1945, which killed an estimated 140,000 people. The White House welcomed Abe’s trip to Obama’s home state of Hawaii, and confirmed that Obama will accompany him to the battleship Arizona memorial at the harbor.

Source: Los Angeles Times December 05, 2016 13:55 UTC