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Hu calls on joint efforts to settle China-Japan disputes
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-04-30 22:45 BEIJING -- Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday called for joint efforts from Japan to properly settle existing problems and disputes between the two countries, especially historical issues.
China is ready to make joint efforts with Japan to abide by the principles and spirits of the four Sino-Japanese political documents, and increasingly cement the political foundation and ensure healthy and stable development of bilateral relations, Hu said.
"That stance has not changed and would never change," he said. On the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II on August 15, 1995, the then Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama issued a statement expressing "deep remorse" and his "heartfelt apology" for Japan's colonial rule and aggression before and during the war. Murayama is the first Japanese prime minister to publicly admit Japan's aggression and to apologize to the war victims. On the 60th anniversary of Japan's surrender on August 15 of 2005, the then Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi apologized to the victims of Japan's past aggression and expressed willingness to join hands with Asian neighbors like China and the Republic of Korea to help maintain peace in the region. |