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Japan criticized for protest over UN chief's visit to Beijing

China Daily, September 2, 2015

• Beijing said on Tuesday that Japan's latest complaints over United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's upcoming visit to China for V-Day commemorations are "completely making trouble out of nothing" as the UN chief said it is very important for the world community to learn from the past and move forward.

  Japan's top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said on Monday that Japan had complained to the UN over Ban's plan, which includes attending a parade on Sept 3, AFP reported.

  Suga said: "We want to encourage member countries to look to the future and not to unnecessarily focus on particular events in the past".

  In a response, Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN chief, told a daily press briefing in New York on Monday afternoon that: "...the Secretary‑General's thinking behind attending the ceremony in Beijing is that he's attended ceremonies in Ukraine, in Poland, as well as in Moscow."

  Asked about his response to Japan's concern over his upcoming China visit, Ban told reporters that "the whole world is now commemorating the 70th anniversary of the ending of the Second World War, the most tragic in the history of human beings and at the same time the founding of the United Nations."

  "It's important to look to the past, what kinds of lessons we have been learning, and how we can move ahead to a brighter future based on the lessons learned. That is the main purpose," Xinhua news agency quoted Ban as saying.

  Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in a press conference in Beijing on Tuesday that Beijing has already taken note of the relevant reports and the clear position outlined by the UN.

  "At such a moment when the international community is marking the 70th anniversary of the victory of the world's Anti-Fascist War in various forms, the relevant comments by Japan are completely making trouble out of nothing," Hua said.

  Japan is expected to "take a humble attitude, face the past squarely and express deep remorse over the militarist history of aggression", Hua said.

  The spokeswoman reiterated that the events are being held by the Chinese government on Sept 3 in order to "remember history, recall the martyrs, cherish peace and open up to the future".

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