China rains on Tokyo’s parade
It’s been nearly 70 years since the end of World War II and the Japanese occupation of China, but China’s government would like to remind the world that Japan was not very nice back then, just in case we all forgot.
The state-run Global Times carries an editorial congratulating Tokyo on its selection to host the 2020 Olympic Games, while opining that the Games will only be a success if Japan admits to its war crimes.
Very diplomatic, and surely Japan will rush to atone for its sins.
“Japan should learn how to behave,” the Global Times said in an editorial that focused mostly on Beijing’s longstanding diplomatic rivalry with Tokyo.
The paper lamented Japan’s “lousy job in reflecting its misdeeds in the second world war”, specifically pointing to visits by senior figures to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, where the souls of the country’s war dead are enshrined including 14 Class A war criminals.
To be fair, Japan’s leadership has been just as tone deaf regarding the wartime atrocities committed by the Japanese military — even denying the Rape of Nanjing happened, but way to stay classy, China!
More: China: Tokyo Olympics Will Only Be Success if Japan Recognises War Aggression
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