TOKYO
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will not be visiting China next month for a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, according to local media.
Kyodo News cited Japanese government sources as saying Monday that Abe will instead aim to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of international gatherings later this year. The U.N. General Assembly meeting is set to be held in New York next month and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in the Philippines in November.
They added that attendance of the Sept. 3 events -- including a military parade -- celebrating "victory against Japan" day may have led to the impression that Tokyo has accepted the expansion of Chinese military presence in disputed regional waters.
On Sept. 2, 1945, Japan formally surrendered to the Allied powers at a signing ceremony on the U.S. battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay.
In March, a government source had told Kyodo that Abe was cautious about attending the event, which will be the first to feature a military parade through Tiananmen Square.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had earlier said that Beijing would extend an invitation to the leaders of all relevant countries and international organizations, and would “welcome the participation of anyone who is sincere about coming."
He added, "seventy years ago, Japan lost the war. Seventy years later, Japan must not lose its conscience."
The invitation of Abe came following a landmark meeting among the Japanese, Chinese and South Korean foreign ministers that focused on territorial and historical issues, after which the ruling parties of Japan and China officially agreed to restart conference exchanges that had been suspended in 2009.
Japan’s relations with China and South Korea remain badly strained over matters of history, with Tokyo’s current administration repeatedly being accused of taking a conservative approach to its imperialist deeds.
In a statement on World War II transgressions earlier this month, Abe referred to Japan’s repeated expressions of deep remorse and apology over the past, but was criticized for not offering anything new.
