Japan Following Path of Peace-Loving Country: Diplomat

Shanghai, May 21 (Jiji Press)--Japan has been following the path of a peace-loving nation for 70 years since the end of World War II and has contributed to global peace and prosperity, Japanese diplomat Hidehisa Horinouchi said Wednesday. Horinouchi, minister at the Japanese embassy in Beijing, made the remark at the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, or CICA, in Shanghai, countering a joint statement by the leaders of China and Russia. Japan joined the conference as an observer. In the statement issued Tuesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the two countries adamantly oppose any attempts to distort history and destroy the postwar order, apparently pointing to Japan. Ties between Japan and China have been strained over history and other issues, including on the Japanese-administered Senkaku islands in the East China Sea, also claimed by China. Tokyo and Moscow have a territorial issue over four northwestern Pacific islands that were seized by the former Soviet Union from Japan at the end of World War II. Trying to dispel China's concern about the security policy of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Horinouchi stressed that Japan's aspirations for peace have been unwavering. The Abe administration is aiming to enable Japan to exercise its collective self-defense right by changing the government's interpretation of the Japanese constitution. Horinouchi said Japan hopes to see disputes resolved peacefully based on international law, apparently keeping in mind the Senkaku issue and sovereignty disputes between China and Southeast Asian nations in the South China Sea. Xi welcomed Horinouchi's remarks and said he hopes that countries concerned will play active roles in promoting peace, mutual trust and prosperity, according to sources with access to the CICA meeting. END