China demands that Japan commit to pacifism and respect for historical memory.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi warns against attempts to rewrite the past and urges Tokyo to maintain a pacifist policy and regional cooperation.
247 - In a press conference following the 10th Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers Meeting on Friday (15), the top Chinese diplomat, Wang Yi, made a strong appeal for Japan to preserve its pacifist policy and fully acknowledge its past. The report is from the Prensa Latina agency.
According to Wang Yi, "learning from history is essential to building a better future." He recalled that on August 15, 1945, Japan accepted the Potsdam Agreement and announced its unconditional surrender in World War II, after causing "profound calamities to the Chinese people and Asian countries, as well as seriously affecting Japanese citizens."
International documents and historical responsibility
The Chinese Foreign Minister cited the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Declaration as international legal milestones that hold Tokyo responsible for the war and mandate the return of Chinese territories, including Taiwan, seized during the military occupation. He argued that these documents represent "immutable achievements of the victory against fascism" and constitute an essential part of the postwar international order.
Wang Yi warned that, even after eight decades, sectors in Japan are attempting to “justify or deny aggression, distort history, alter textbooks, and rehabilitate war criminals.” He classified these actions as “morally reprehensible” and contrary to the Charter of the United Nations, as well as a challenge to the international order and the memory of the victims of fascism.
Appeal for regional cooperation
Given this scenario, the Chinese minister urged Japan to "make the right decisions, not forget historical facts, and avoid straying again from the path of pacifist policy and regional cooperation."
The year 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the Anti-Fascist World War, which will be celebrated on September 3rd with a grand military parade in Beijing. Official figures indicate that China suffered more than 35 million casualties in the war, equivalent to one-third of all deaths recorded globally in the conflict.
