Tokyo, Dec 26 : Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe controversial visit to the war-linked Yasukuni Shrine has sparked predictable outrage from China and South Korea.

China's foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said that they strongly condemn the Abe's visit to the shrine with a purpose to beautify Japan's history of militaristic aggression and colonial rule, the Guardian reports.

Abe visited the shrine for war dead to mark the first anniversary of the launch of his administration.

The shrine honors Class-A World War II criminals along with the country's war-time casualties and is seen by neighboring countries as symbolic of Japan's wartime militarism.

Abe is the first Japanese prime minister to visit the shrine since Junichiro Koiuzmi in 2006. (ANI)