PRIME Minister Shinzo Abe sent a note earlier this year to a ceremony honouring hundreds of war criminals, praising their contributions to the country, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga admitted today.

Mr Abe sent the message to an annual ceremony held on April 29 at the Koyasan Buddhist temple in central Japan, but as ruling party leader not prime minister, Mr Suga claimed.

“I humbly express my deepest sympathy for the martyrs ... who sacrificed their souls to become the foundation of peace and prosperity in Japan today,” wrote Mr Abe.

“I hope for eternal peace and pledge to work toward a harmonious coexistence of mankind in the future.”

The revelation about the note could worsen Japan’s ties with China and South Korea, who have repeatedly criticised Mr Abe’s revisionist views on wartime history.

His message was read out to about 220 people who attended the ceremony, according to Midori Nakatsuji at the organisers’ office.

She added that Mr Abe had sent a similar message to last year’s service.

The ceremony was held in front of a stone monument that honours about 1,180 Japanese war criminals, including wartime Prime Minister Hideki Tojo and 13 other executed leaders from the era.

The criminals, who are also honoured at Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine, were convicted of crimes against peace and humanity by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, held in Tokyo by allied forces after the war.

Japan officially accepted the tribunal decisions, but Mr Abe insists that those convicted are not considered war criminals under domestic law.