Chinese defense ministry urges Japan to speed up disposal of its abandoned chemical weapons

A Chinese defense spokesperson on Thursday urged Japan to speed up the disposal of Japanese abandoned chemical weapons (ACWs) in China and to restore clean land to the Chinese people as soon as possible.

In recent times, a number of newly uncovered historical documents on the crimes committed by invading Japanese forces on Chinese soil have been released. These include thousands of pages of archives and images of Unit 731 – a notorious Japanese germ-warfare unit that committed atrocities during World War II – a collection of photos of the Japanese invasion of south China's Guangdong Province, as well as diaries and photo albums of Japanese invaders found in north China's Hebei Province.

Answering questions during a regular press briefing, Zhang Xiaogang, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, said the brutal and inhumane acts of aggression and the heinous crimes of massacre committed by Japanese militarism have brought horrific disasters to the Chinese people and the people of many Asian countries.

In particular, Unit 731, which blatantly violated international law and launched biological warfare against the Chinese people, committed inhuman atrocities, Zhang said, adding that the history is irrefutable, undeniable, and will never be erased.

Noting that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, he urged Japan to deeply reflect on its historical crimes, speed up the disposal of its ACWs , and restore clean land to the Chinese people as soon as possible.