Japanese PM Abe, US President Obama to visit Pearl Harbor today

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and US President Barack Obama will today visit Pearl Harbor, the US naval base that was attacked by the Japanese in 1941. It will be the first visit by the leaders of both countries since the attack that killed 2,300 American servicemen and propelled US into World War Two.

Mr Abe landed at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam yesterday and then headed to National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, where he laid a



wreath. He stood for a moment of silence at the cemetery near Honolulu, which is known as Punchbowl. He later visited a nearby memorial for nine boys and men who died when a US Navy submarine collided with their Japanese fishing vessel in 2001.

At Pearl Harbor today, both leaders will pay homage to those killed during the attack. Later, they will hold a summit meeting in Hawaii, their last before Mr Obama steps down next month.