Foreign friends, overseas patriots, generals and family dependants of well-known people who died in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression spoke highly of China's commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the war's victory.

Maeda Mitsushige, once a Japanese prisoner of war in China, said he was impressed by the speech of President Hu Jintao and was encouraged by Hu's remarks on relations between Japan and China, adding he would dedicate himself to the friendship between Japan and China.

After attending the flower wreath-laying ceremony at the Tiananmen Square in Beijing, Yang Zhengying, daughter of famous anti-Japanese general Yang Hucheng, said today's peace is the very wish of her father and numerous martyrs.

Hsu Li-nung, a Taiwanese who had fought in the anti-Japanese war, said he came to the Chinese mainland for commemoration because there are no such activities held in Taiwan.

He hopes the commemoration would arouse common memories of compatriots across the Taiwan Straits.

(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2005)