Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday commemorated the 77th anniversary of the official start of a war with Japan, condemning those who “ignore the iron facts of history” in an oblique jab at Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Xi and a cast of hundreds of soldiers and schoolchildren gathered for a ceremony on the edge of the capital to mark the Marco Polo Bridge incident, a skirmish between Chinese and Japanese troops on July 7, 1937, that served as a pretext for Tokyo’s forces to seize Beijing and triggered the second Sino-Japanese war.
The event, carried live on state television, came amid a deluge of articles in China’s state and Chinese Communist Party (CCP)-controlled media outlets linked to the anniversary and criticizing Tokyo for historical revisionism and moves toward potential remilitarization.
Photo: AFP
The conflict, commonly known in China as the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, left 20 million Chinese dead, according to Beijing’s estimates.
It ended with Tokyo’s World War II defeat in 1945.
Flanked by aging war veterans and young students, Xi unveiled a slab-like sculpture marking the start of the conflict and praised the resistance of all sectors of Chinese society against what he described as Japan’s “barbaric invasion” aimed at “annexing” China. Japan had already invaded Manchuria in 1931.
“There are still a small number of people who ignore the iron facts of history,” Xi said, but he avoided mentioning Japan or Abe by name.
“History is history and facts are facts. Nobody can change history and facts,” he added. “Anyone who intends to deny, distort or beautify history will not find agreement among Chinese people and people of all other countries.”
Li Wei (李薇), chief Japan expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a top government think tank, said it was clear who Xi was referring to.
“It at least includes Shinzo Abe and people who deny history or are trying to gloss over history,” she told reporters.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary and top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga said in response to yesterday’s commemorations: “China unnecessarily turning an historical issue into an international one does nothing to contribute to peace and cooperation in the region.”
Tokyo remains repentant, he added.
“There is no change to the position of the Japanese government regarding historical issues stemming from World War II, and our nation’s path as a pacifist nation since the war has been highly regarded in the international community,” Suga said.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS