New shrine visits ratchet tension

Beijing has questioned Tokyo's ability to acknowledge its past aggression as Japanese Cabinet ministers paid their respects at the Yasukuni shrine on Friday, the 69th anniversary of Japan's World War II defeat.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sent a ritual offering to the shrine, which honors 14 Class-A Japanese war criminals, in addition to the visits made by ministers and lawmakers, ratcheting up the tension between Japan and its neighbors.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that the visits by Internal Affairs Minister Yoshitaka Shindo and Keiji Furuya, chairman of the National Public Safety Commission, reflect the Japanese government's incorrect attitude toward history. Yasukuni is dedicated to the memory of Japanese militarism and enshrines the souls of criminals found guilty of waging wars of aggression.

"The Yasukuni shrine is a symbol and spiritual tool of Japanese militarism," Hua said, "Visits to the shrine raise questions about whether the Japanese government acknowledges its past aggression or respects the feelings of countries it victimized.

"Only when Japan sincerely faces up to and acknowledges its history of invasion and makes a clear break from its militarism, can China-Japan relations return to a track of healthy and stable development," she said. Hua repeated China's call for Japan to regain the trust of its Asian neighbors by taking concrete steps.

zhang_yi@chinadaily.com.cn