Japan PM Ishiba to Visit Iwo Jima Sat.

Tokyo, March 28 (Jiji Press)--Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Friday that he will visit Ioto, widely known as Iwo Jima, on Saturday to attend an event to honor soldiers who died in the fierce battle on the Pacific island 80 years ago.

Ishiba will be the first sitting Japanese prime minister to visit the island since then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in April 2013.

"I want to think about what Japan and the United States, which both value freedom, democracy and the rule of law, can do for the peace and prosperity of the world, in order to strengthen the (Japan-U.S.) relationship further," Ishiba told a parliament committee meeting.

The memorial event will be held jointly by the two countries. Participants will include Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Nearly 30,000 Japanese and U.S. troops were killed in the battle on Ioto between February and March 1945 in the last phase of the Pacific War, part of World War II.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]