Accepting Tokyo Trials' verdicts, a prerequisite for Japan's return to the international community after World War II: Chinese FM spokesperson

When asked to comment on the 78th anniversary of the verdict delivered by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, or the Tokyo Trials, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Thursday that history must never be forgotten, and justice must never be challenged. The international community should work together to oppose all attempts to whitewash the history of aggression and revive militarism.

Mao said that on this day 78 years ago, following two and a half years of proceedings, the Tokyo Trials, based on overwhelming evidence and rigorous legal reasoning, found that Japanese militarism had waged wars of aggression and committed serious violations of international law, sentencing 25 Class-A Japanese war criminals. The verdict exposed Japan's wartime atrocities to the world and left an enduring mark of historical disgrace.

The Tokyo Trials are an integral part of the postwar international order, and accepting their verdicts was a prerequisite for Japan's return to the international community after World War II. For years, Japanese right-wing forces have disregarded the historical conclusions of the Tokyo Trials, vigorously denied or even glorified the country's crimes of aggression, and promoted a distorted view of history, a stance that is deeply deplorable, Mao said.

According to Mao, what is particularly alarming is that in recent years, the Japanese government has accelerated its remilitarization by sharply increasing defense spending, expanding offensive military capabilities, seeking revisions to the three security documents and moving to abandon its Three Non-Nuclear Principles.

These moves will seriously challenge the fundamental legal principles established by the Tokyo Trials and pose a grave threat to regional peace and stability, Mao said.

History must never be forgotten, and justice must never be challenged. The international community should work together to oppose all attempts to whitewash the history of aggression and revive militarism, Mao said.

China stands ready to join peace-loving countries and peoples around the world in firmly upholding historical truth, safeguarding the postwar international order, and defending international fairness and justice, Mao said.