(ECNS) -- China has called on Japan to speed up the complete disposal of chemical weapons abandoned in China during World War II and to help restore clean land and deliver justice, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.
Japan left tens of thousands of chemical weapons in China at the end of World War II, many of which remain buried and hazardous today.
Responding to a question at a daily news briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the chemical weapons abandoned by Japan in China represent "one of the gravest crimes that Japanese militarists committed during the war of aggression against China."
China has been urging Japan to destroy these weapons in strict accordance with the Chemical Weapons Convention and memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between both nations, it was noted.
Guo said that to date, Japan has excavated and retrieved over 160,000 abandoned chemical weapons and destroyed about 130,000. However, the destruction process generally lags.
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Wednesday also marks the 26th anniversary of the MOU signed by China and Japan on the disposal of Japanese chemical weapons abandoned in China.
"China urges Japan to take seriously the concerns of China and the international community, deeply reflect on its history of aggression, honor its commitment, increase input across the board, and do everything possible to accelerate the full chain of disposal of abandoned chemical weapons," the spokesperson said."We hope the day will come sooner when the Chinese people no longer have to live on soil tainted by abandoned chemical weapons, and when justice is restored to the international community."
(By Gong Weiwei)
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