WASHINGTON - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe showed a lack of respect for history in his recent controversial remarks to Japanese lawmakers, the Washington Post said in an editorial published on Saturday.

After reviewing the "brave steps" taken by Abe to reform Japan's economy, the article suggested his controversial remarks over Japan's wartime aggression could put all the progress at risk.

When asked in parliament whether he would reconsider an official apology that Japan issued in 1995 for its colonization of Korea in the past century, Abe said the definition of "aggression" has yet to be established and there may be different interpretations of Japan's role in WWII.

"Officials in South Korea and China responded with fury, and understandably so. Yes, history is always being reinterpreted. But there are such things as facts. Japan occupied Korea. It occupied Manchuria and then the rest of China. It invaded Malaya. It committed aggression," the article said.

The editorial also contrasts Japan's unwillingness to acknowledge historical facts with Germany's honest attitude in this regard.

Abe's attempts to "entertain nostalgia for prewar empire" could take a heavy toll on his ability to promote reform at home or to reassure suspicious neighbors, the article said.