Japanese remembered on Wednesday those fallen during World War II in a ceremony attended by Premier Shinzo Abe, the imperial family and other high-ranked officials. 

Thousands of people gathered in Tokyo to mark the 62nd anniversary of the war’s end and pay a tribute to more than 3 million people killed during the conflict. The ceremony was another occasion for the prime minister to outline Japan’s policy of maintaining world-wide peace.

Abe said Japan won’t participate at another armed conflict and will search for alternatives in order to maintain peace across the globe.

“We firmly maintain the no-war pledge and actively contribute to the establishment of ever-lasting peace in the world,” Abe said.

”Our country inflicted considerable damage and pain on people in countries in Asia in the war,” he also said referring to Japan’s actions against other Asian nations during the conflict.

A traditional landmark visited by thousands each year is the Yasukuni Shrine. The Shinto shrine is a place of pilgrimage for those honoring the memory of about 2.4 million people who died fighting for Japan during wartime.

The shrine is also a subject of controversy, many politicians avoiding to visit it because of criticism coming from the Japanese or from abroad. On Wednesday, only one member of Abe’s cabinet visited the shrine, the premier and rest of his ministers refraining from doing the same.

Japan’s state minister for Okinawa and Northern Territories affairs Sanae Takaichi was the only cabinet member to visit the Tokyo shrine.

Despite protests and criticism, the former premier Junichiro Koizumi, kept following his itinerary established while he was prime minister and visited the Yasukuni Shrine on Wednesday.

About 90 lawmakers and the city’s governor Shintaro Ishihara also attended the ceremony and paid a visit to the shrine.