Japan emperor visits memorial to Korean war dead

SAIPAN (Reuters) - Japanese Emperor Akihito, on a pilgrimage to the U.S. territory of Saipan -- site of a decisive World War Two battle -- abruptly changed his schedule on Tuesday to visit a memorial to Koreans who died in the Pacific conflict. 

Akihito's journey, his first trip outside Japan to pay respects to war dead, coincides with a deterioration in Japan's ties with China and South Korea, still tormented by the wartime past 60 years later.