2014年11月5日星期三

Beijing slams shrine offering

Beijing slams shrine offering

Beijing slams shrine offering


A wartime sword is displayed at the Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance against Japanese Aggression in Beijing on Friday, in commemoration of the 69th anniversary of Japan's defeat. More than 100 wartime items were donated to the museum on Friday. Photo: CFP

China on Friday "firmly opposed" Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ritual offering to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine on the 69th anniversary of Japan's defeat in World War II, as well as the visit of his cabinet ministers to the site.Abe did not visit the shrine in person due to diplomatic concerns about China and South Korea, especially since he has been seeking opportunities to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Beijing in November. The two leaders have not officially talked since Abe began his second term in December 2012."The visit and offering again reflect the Japanese government's wrong attitude toward historical issues," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Friday in a statement. Unlike the "private" shrine visit he paid on December 26, 2013 that further frayed the Sino-Japanese relationship, Abe's Friday offering was sent through his aide Kouichi Hagiuda in his role as president of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).In a Friday speech during the annual ceremony to commemorate Japan's war dead, Abe again omitted the declaration that Japan will not fight another war, while stating that the country will make contributions to lasting world peace.He did not mention Japan's aggression against its Asian neighbors either, for the second time in a row.The "no war" statement has previously been made at the annual ceremony since 1994, the year that then Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama expressed remorse over Japan's invasions of neighboring countries, according to the Xinhua News Agency.Hua stressed that only when Japan faces up to and reflects on its historical invasion and draws the line at militarism can the Sino-Japanese relations achieve sound and stable development.The site enshrines 14 convicted Class-A WWII war criminals along with Japan's war dead. The repeated visits by Japanese leaders have long been viewed by its neighboring countries as a symbol of Japan's reluctance to reflect on wartime history.South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Friday echoed China's opposition, saying the actions of some Japanese politicians were splitting the two nations. Keiji Furuya, chairman of the National Public Safety Commission and former secretary of Abe's father, paid homage at the shrine Friday. Another cabinet member, internal affairs and communications minister Yoshitaka Shindo, also visited the shrine, followed by Tomomi Inada, minister for administrative reforms.Apart from cabinet members, more than 80 parliament members also paid their respects at Yasukuni. More than 100 sent aides, Reuters reported.Although Abe did not pay homage, he didn't restrain his cabinet ministers either, even the influential ones. It suggests that the conflict over historical issues between China and the LDP will be a long-term obstacle, Geng Xin, deputy director of the Tokyo-based JCC New Japan Research Institute, told the Global Times.Abe has been calling for a meeting with Xi and pledging to ease the tensions while China accused him of not carrying out concrete and practical moves. After several round of exchanges of ministerial-level meetings between the two sides in unofficial occasions since April, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida met on the sidelines of ASEAN meetings in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar on August 9, which was viewed as meaningful but still "unofficial."The two are believed to have explored the possibility of talks between the two leaders, but acknowledging the territorial disputes over the Diaoyu Islands and a promise to stop shrine visits by Abe have been repeatedly stated by China as the two bottom lines for the meet.While observers have been calling that the two countries to be cautious around the Diaoyu Islands to avoid any possible conflicts, Yojiro Kaku, a veteran Sino-Japanese relationship expert, considered the shrine visit an easier point, although a separate worship mechanism that was deemed effective by some has not been accepted yet.The bilateral tension sees further strains as Abe pushed for a reinterpretation of the country's pacifist constitution in July that will allow Japan to exercise collective self- defense and fight overseas for its allies. China warned that this might jeopardize regional security.Abe's hawkish moves have been winning domestic support because of his incentives to kick-start the stagnant economy. However, the country saw the biggest GDP contraction last quarter since the March 2011 earthquake, as a sales tax hike led to an annualized 6.8 percent shrinkage from April through June, Cabinet Office data showed on Wednesday.Japan's economic performance and interactions between the two sides remain significant as it will influence the possibility for a meeting of leaders, which will decide the following moves, Geng told the Global Times.



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