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 Abe on Friday expressed "utmost grief", but said future
generations should not have to keep apologizing for the mistakes of
the past. He offered no fresh apology of his own.
"Reflecting on our past and bearing in mind the feelings of deep
remorse over the last war, I earnestly hope that the ravages of war
will never be repeated," Akihito, 81, said at a memorial service on
the anniversary of the day his father, Hirohito, announced Japan's
defeat.
"Together with all of our people, I now pay my heartfelt tribute to
all those who lost their lives in the war, both on the battlefields
and elsewhere, and pray for world peace and for the continuing
development of our country."
The legacy of the war still haunts relations with China and South
Korea, which suffered under Japan's sometimes brutal occupation and
colonial rule before Tokyo's defeat in 1945.
 The soft-spoken Akihito has often urged Japan not to forget the
suffering of the war and tried to promote reconciliation with Asian
countries. His comments have attracted increased attention at a time
when Abe appears to be pushing for a less apologetic tone towards
Japan's past.
Akihito had expressed remorse before, but not at the annual service.
The constitution bans the emperor from any political role, so his
remarks need to be carefully nuanced.
On Saturday, Abe sent a ritual cash offering to Yasukuni Shrine for
war dead but did not visit the shrine, seen in China and South Korea
as a symbol of Tokyo's wartime militarism.
While Abe, who has said he wants to repair ties with China and South
Korea, did not visit Yasukuni in person, three of his cabinet
ministers did along with the LDP's policy chief, Tomomi Inada, and
scores of other conservative lawmakers.
"HONOR AND DIGNITY"
Such visits outrage China and South Korea because the shrine honors
14 Japanese leaders convicted as war criminals by an Allied
tribunal, along with war dead. Abe has not visited in person since
December 2013.
 China's Foreign Ministry said that Saturday's visit "reflects
Japan's seriously wrong attitude to historical issues", while
protesters at a Seoul rally burnt pictures of Abe.
The remarks on Friday by Abe, seen by critics as a revisionist who
wants to play down the dark chapters of Japan's wartime past,
received mixed reviews abroad.
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Tokyo's close ally the United States welcomed Abe's commitment to
uphold apologies made in the past.
The United States approves of Abe's plans to play a greater security
role in Asia in the face of a rising China, but also wants a
lessening of tensions over history.
China said that Japan should apologize sincerely to countries that
suffered from its military aggression and urged Japan to "take
concrete actions to gain the trust of its Asian neighbors and the
global community".
South Korean President Park Geun-hye said Seoul was focused on Abe's
decision to uphold previous cabinets' understanding of history, but
added that the speech contained "regrettable elements". She said she
hoped Japan "soon and properly" resolved issues regarding women's
"honor and dignity".
Abe on Friday said Japan should "never forget that there were women
behind the battlefields whose honor and dignity were severely
injured". But he made no direct reference to "comfort women", a
euphemism for the girls and women - many of them Korean - forced
into prostitution at Japanese military brothels.
Tokyo and Seoul have long been at odds over the issue of comfort
women, with South Korea saying Japan has not done enough to atone
for their suffering despite a 1993 apology.
North Korea condemned what it called an attempt by Japanese
"rightist conservatives to conceal its crime-woven past".
Abe's conservative supporters are keen for Japan to put an end to
what they see as a humiliating cycle of apologies.
"We need to terminate (the cycle of apology) for our grandchildren
and the grandchildren's grandchildren," said a 64-year-old man
visiting Yasukuni.
(Additional reporting by Ju-Min Park in Seoul, Engen Tham in Beijing
and Elaine Lies in Tokyo.; Writing by Linda Sieg; Editing by William
Mallard and Nick Macfie)
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