Japan urged to honor commitments

Beijing on Aug 15 urged Tokyo to honor its commitments to historical issues as a response to the Japanese cabinet members' visit to the Yasukuni Shrine, the Foreign Ministry said.

Two Japanese Cabinet ministers — Jin Matsubara and Yuichiro Hata — visited the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on the 67th anniversary of Japan's World War II surrender.

The shrine — which honors the war dead, including 14 major war criminals — is seen as a dark reminder of Japan's militaristic past by its Asian neighbors, including China and South Korea.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said that the crux of the Yasukuni Shrine issue is whether Japan can correctly see and approach its history of militaristic aggression and whether Japan can respect the feelings of people in Asian countries, which were victims of the Japanese atrocities, including China.

Japan's initiative to take history as a mirror, draw lessons from it and face the future hand in hand with Asian people "lies within the hands of Japan itself", Qin said.

"We hope that the Japanese side earnestly stands by its solemn commitments made so far on facing up and introspecting its history of aggression, and takes tangible moves to safeguard the big picture of China-Japan relations," Qin said.