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China calls for Japan's correct attitude towards war crimes

Xinhua, December 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

China on Wednesday responded to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's planned Pearl Harbor visit by calling on Japan to take a correct attitude towards Japanese militarism and its crimes against humanity.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said it is very important to maintain justice and the post-war international order, and very important for Japan to take a correct attitude towards history in order to win the trust of people of China and other Asian countries that have been victimized.

Abe announced Monday that he will visit Pearl Harbor later this month to mourn the victims of the Japanese surprise attack 75 years ago.

However, Abe's top spokesperson, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, made it clear that during Abe's visit that "no apology would be offered" for the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Lu said the war launched by Japanese militarists brought catastrophe to people of regional countries, especially Asian countries.

"The international community pays close attention to whether Japan has a sincere and correct attitude towards that period of history," he told a routine press briefing.

Regarding opinions in Japan that Abe should visit the Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre, Lu said that if Japanese side wishes to reflect on its history and offer a sincere apology, there are many places in China for them to do so.

Aside from Nanjing, there is a museum dedicated to the history of the September 18 Incident in 1931, which marks the beginning of the 14-year Japanese invasion of China, and the site of the former Army Unit 731, the Japanese army's biological and chemical warfare unit, Lu said.

"There are also many places in other neighboring countries, reminding Japan and the international community that Japan's war crimes against humanity cannot be forgotten, and history cannot be distorted," he said.

The Chinese people will never forget the victims of the Nanjing Massacre and enormous sacrifice during the war against Japanese aggression, just as the American people will not forget the Pearl Harbor attack, the spokesperson added. Endi