At a ceremony marking the 77th anniversary of its defeat in World War II on Monday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida renewed the country's pledge to never again wage war. 

The event came as hundreds of Japanese people staged anti-war demonstrations in capital Tokyo, expressing opposition to the revision of Article 9 of the country's constitution. The protesters also condemned visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, which holds memorial tablets of 14 convicted Class-A Japanese war criminals.