Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had the opportunity to continue along the same path as his predecessor, Tomiichi Murayama, and apologize for Japan's past aggression.

However, those that had waited with bated breath for Abe's statement on Friday, a day before the 70th anniversary of Japan's surrender in WWII, would have had to listen very closely to hear any real remorse.

The statement did involve a sort of vague apology, but one that should you have blinked, you would have missed. Rather than building on the wording of past statements by his predecessors, Abe's statement stood by the current cabinet's attitude toward Japan's atrocities in WWII.

Abe said Japan had repeatedly apologized and expressed deep remorse for the war, and although maintaining the stance of previous cabinets, he said, Japan's post-WWII generations should not have to keep apologizing for the country's past.

In 1995, in a landmark move, then prime minister Tomiichi Murayama expressed "deep remorse" for Japan's aggression and colonial rule and rendered a "heartfelt apology".

The Murayama Statement earned respect not only from Japan's wartime victim nations, including China and the Republic of Korea, but also from its own peace-loving citizens.

Whereas the incumbent Japanese leader failed to mention Japan's aggression and colonial rule, instead he said that use of force should not be used as a solution to international disputes and the world should end colonial rule.

Indeed, the wording of the Japanese leader's statement shows the true colors of the current nationalist government. Even before giving the address, Abe had defied convention by changing the date of his speech to Aug. 14, while previous prime ministers had delivered theirs on Aug. 15.

Such artifice will do little for his political image, especially at a time when his approval rating is falling steadily thanks, in part, to the passage of a controversial new security bill, which expands the role of its Self-Defense Forces at the lower house of parliament.

Owning up to its past aggressions and accepting the globally-acknowledged view of its wartime activities will not tarnish Japan's reputation within the international community.

Actually, in Germany's case sincere reconciliation efforts saw it elevated to a more comfortable role in the economic and political communities, both regionally and internationally.

Saturday marks 70 years since Japan formally surrendered, yet the wounds it inflicted upon its Asian neighbors have not yet healed.

Japan's wartime atrocities are regarded by many as one of the darkest periods of modern history, acknowledgement of this will release the country from the shackles of the past and concrete efforts can help heal the wounds of those it wronged.

Should Japan really want to be a reliable regional player, this should be the obligation of all its leaders.

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