Lin Jian

In response to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's remarks affirming that Japan has taken on a path of peace after the war, and this will not change in the future, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Wednesday that China attaches importance to his words.?

At a regular press briefing on Wednesday, Lin said that in November 2024, Prime Minister Ishiba said during his meeting with President Xi Jinping in Lima that Japan has upheld a path of peaceful development in the spirit of facing history squarely and looking to the future. "This time Prime Minister Ishiba further announced that Japan should reflect on history and remember the lessons so that Japan would not repeat past mistakes of war. We attach importance to his words," Lin said.?

Lin emphasized that a correct perception and attitude towards history and concrete actions that demonstrate reflection on and apology for the history of aggression are important premises for Japan to rejoin the international community after World War II. They matter to the political foundation of China-Japan relations, to Japan's relationship with neighboring countries and to Japan's global image.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the Victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Japan once again faces the questions posed by history and moral justice. History illuminates the present with stark lessons, Lin said.

The four political documents between China and Japan established the important political principle of "learning lessons from history and looking ahead to the future." Japan made serious political commitments. We hope Japan will deeply reflect on its historical crime, fully learn the lessons and, out of a sense of responsibility to history, to the people and to the future, make a clean break with any move that seeks to whitewash or cover up the history of aggression. We hope Japan will stick to the path of peaceful development, and earn through its actions the trust of its Asian neighbors and the international community, Lin stated.

According to Nikkei Shimbun on May 29, Ishiba made remarks at Nikkei Forum "Future of Asia" on May 29, asserting that "We must actively seek to learn from these painful memories of suffering and the lessons of history." He emphasized Japan's postwar commitment to consistently follow the path of a peaceful nation, grounded in its determination never to repeat the horrors of war. "This resolve will remain unchanged going forward," he asserted with conviction.

Da Zhigang, director of the Institute of Northeast Asian Studies at the Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday that Ishiba's statement strikes a different tone from the voices of right-wing forces in Japanese society, demonstrating a relatively objective stance toward history.

However, we must not only listen to his words but also observe his actions, Da said.