MOFA spox confirms Chinese President’s rare visit to DPRK, slams Japan over proposed ‘Nanjing Massacre’ name change

China Confirms Xi’s Upcoming DPRK Visit

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning confirmed President Xi Jinping’s two-day visit to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea during a press conference in Beijing on Friday.

“Under the strategic guidance of General Secretary Xi Jinping and General Secretary Kim Jong Un, the traditional friendly and cooperative relations between China and the DPRK have continued to develop healthily and stably, bringing tangible benefits to both countries and their peoples,” Mao said.

“This year marks the 65th anniversary of the signing of the China-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance. Both sides will take this visit as an opportunity to advance China-DPRK relations in keeping with the times, enhance the well-being of the two peoples […] and prosperity in the region and the world,” she continued.

Xi’s trip next week will be his first overseas visit of the year and comes just weeks after he hosted back-to-back visits by US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in China.

Beijing Criticises Nagasaki Museum Terminology

Meanwhile, Mao also criticised the Nagasaki municipal government’s plans to replace the term ‘Nanjing Massacre’ with ‘Nanjing Incident’ at the exhibition panels of the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum.

“The Tokyo Trials explicitly determined that the atrocities committed by the Japanese military in Nanjing constituted a ‘massacre,’ not a so-called ‘incident’,” she said.

“History cannot be rewritten […] we urge the Japanese side to deeply reflect on its war crimes and completely sever ties with militarism,” she added.

Historical Context of the Nanjing Massacre

The Nanjing Massacre was a six-week campaign carried out by the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II after capturing Nanjing in 1937, that resulted in the deaths of up to 300,000 Chinese civilians and prisoners of war.

Following World War II, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East tried and convicted several high-ranking Japanese commanders involved in the ‘massacre,’ including General Matsui Iwane, for failing to stop the crimes.