China urges Koizumi to avoid war shrine visit
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-05-19 19:14

China appealed to Japan's prime minister Thursday not to visit a Tokyo war shrine, but wouldn't say whether Beijing might support Japan's bid for a permanent UN Security Council seat if he complies.

Visits by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to the Yasukuni Shrine, which critics say glorifies Japan's militarist past, are the ``most important difficulty in Sino-Japanese relations,'' said Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan.

``They need to reflect and refrain from doing anything that might harm the feelings of the Chinese people and the people of Asia,'' Kong said at a regular news briefing. ``Only in this way can we pave the way for sound and stable development of relations between China and Japan.''

Koizumi refused during an appearance before Japan's parliament this week to promise that he would avoid the shrine, which enshrines Japanese war dead, including several convicted war criminals.

Kong didn't respond directly when asked whether China might support Tokyo's campaign for a permanent seat on an expanded Security Council as part of proposed UN reforms if Koizumi agrees to avoid the shrine.

Chinese leaders have said Japan isn't ready for such status partly due to lingering Asian anger at its wartime aggression. Beijing is one of five current permanent Security Council members with power to veto UN actions, and appears reluctant to give such influence to Japan.

``I think the current draft of the current UN Security Council reform still has very great differences with the positions of quite a number of countries in the world,'' Kong said.

Kong refused to comment when asked whether that meant the shrine visits weren't connected to the question of a Japanese seat on the Security Council.

Japan's ambassador to China, Koreshige Anami, reportedly said Wednesday in Tokyo that China wouldn't drop its opposition to Security Council membership for Japan even if Koizumi avoided the shrine.

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