Japan’s National Public Safety Commission Chairman Jin Matsubara has strongly criticized President Lee Myung-bak’s call for an apology from Japan’s emperor, calling the request “rude.”

Japan’s Jiji Press News on Wednesday quoted Matsubara as saying that Lee’s call for the apology and his recent visit to the Dokdo islets were inappropriate.

Matsubara, who is also Japan’s Minister for the Abduction Issue, made the remark while visiting the controversial Yasukuni Shrine on Wednesday, the 67th anniversary of Japan’s surrender during World War Two.

Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also criticized Lee’s remarks, calling them "very impolite." The rightist Japanese politician said Lee was rude because he commented at a time when Japan’s emperor has no imminent plan to visit South Korea.

Lee said Tuesday that the Japanese emperor should offer a sincere apology for his country’s colonial rule of Korea if he wants to visit South Korea.