He is the first Japanese prime minister to visit the shrine on this date since Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone in 1985.

Mr Koizumi arrived at the shrine at around 7:40 a.m. Wearing formal dress, he bowed before the altar at the main building, without following formal Shinto religious style. He signed the register as "Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi" and bought a flower as an offering.

He left the shrine in his security convoy, about 15 minutes later, without speaking to the media.

In each of his five previous annual visits to the shrine, Mr Koizumi said he visits to pay respects to those who died in wars and to pray that Japan will never go to war again.

China and South Korea have condemned his annual visits to Yasukuni Shrine, which honors not only those who died for Japan in past wars, but also enshrines top Japanese war criminals, most of whom were executed after World War II.

This is Mr Koizumi's sixth annual visit to the shrine, but the first on August 15. When first seeking the Liberal Democratic Party leadership, he promised to visit on this date. Last Wednesday, Mr Koizumi said he would honor that promise.

On Thursday, he said it made no difference when he would visit the shrine because the media would criticize any visit.