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China on Wednesday voiced serious concern over Japan's recent military activities, warning that Japan's neo-militarism is rising and poses a threat to regional peace and stability.

Photo: Chinese foreign ministry

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks at a routine press conference in Beijing on Wednesday in response to reports that Japan fired Type 88 missiles during the US-Philippine joint military exercise "Balikatan" on May 6, the first time Japan launched offensive missiles overseas since WWII.

Japan, as a former aggressor, has not only failed to deeply reflect on its historical crimes, but is now dispatching military forces abroad and launching offensive missiles under the pretext of so-called "security cooperation," Lin said.

This development once again shows that Japan's right-wing forces are pushing for the acceleration of remilitarization, continuously breaching the constraints of its exclusively defense-oriented policy, as well as relevant international and domestic legal frameworks, he noted.

"Some of its policies and actions have already gone far beyond the scope of 'self-defense.'"

Lin said that a serious lack of proper historical education, coupled with fundamentally flawed historical perspectives and strategic ambitions to expand military capabilities, is fueling the rise of Japan's "neo-militarism."

"The resurgence of Japan's neo-militarism poses a threat to regional peace and stability," Lin said.

(Video made by intern Zhou Jiayu)