Air force officers reject war apology

More than 70 Japanese air force officers have written essays arguing Japan should not have apologized for its actions in World War II, it emerged yesterday in the latest row over the country's militarist past.

The air force's top general was sacked last week after he submitted an essay in a writing contest saying Japan was not an aggressor in the war, sparking anger in China and South Korea, where many suffered under Japan's invasion and occupation.

The views of air force chief of staff Toshio Tamogami are shared by some Japanese right-wing historians and politicians, but they contradict a government apology for wartime actions issued in 1995 under then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama.