Q: Could you comment on some Japanese congressmen paying tribute to the Yasukuni Shrine?

He forced all the ministers to pay homage to the monument monthly!

Other irritants fester: the revision of Japan's history books, Japanese officials' visits to ancient shrines honoring wartime heroes, trade issues and territorial conflicts.

But the most important move that Mr Abe could make to help reconcile his foreign-policy ambitions with the neighbours' suspicions is to avoid visiting Yasukuni.

After that ritual it is not to be trod upon until practice resumes the following morning, though the young wrestler unthinkingly entered to pay his respects.