China strongly deplores Japanese politicians' Yasukuni Shrine moves

China strongly deplores Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's monetary offering to the Yasukuni war shrine and visits to the shrine by certain cabinet members, and has lodged serious protests against Japan in response, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Saturday.

August 15 marks the day of Japan's unconditional surrender in World War II.

"During WWII, Japan launched the war of aggression and committed horrendous crimes," the spokesperson said. "The Yasukuni war shrine is a spiritual tool and symbol of Japanese militarism."

The shrine honors 14 convicted Class-A war criminals responsible for the war of aggression and is "in fact a shrine for war criminals", the spokesperson added.

"No pretext whatsoever can hide the Japanese politicians' true intention which is to change the verdict on the war criminals, cover up Japan's war crimes, distort the historical facts, and pave the way for accelerating remilitarization," the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson described such moves as "an affront to historical justice, a challenge to the foundational norms of civilization, and a provocation against the postwar international order", saying they have been firmly rejected by the overwhelming majority of the international community.

Noting that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Trials, the spokesperson said viewing and treating history correctly is an important prerequisite for Japan's postwar return to the international community, the political foundation for its ties with neighboring countries, and a key measure of its commitment to peaceful development.

"We urge the Japanese side to do serious soul-searching on its history of aggression, make a clean break with militarism, and earn trust from its Asian neighbors and the rest of the world with concrete actions," the spokesperson said.