Source: Xinhua| 2017-08-23 19:51:42|Editor: Lu Hui

Hua Chunying, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Photo: fmprc.gov.cn)

BEIJING, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- China Wednesday urged Japan to take the security concerns of its Asian neighbors seriously and act prudently in military and security fields.

It has been reported by Japanese news service Kyodo, that the Defense Ministry plans to seek a record-high budget of 5.26 trillion yen (48.1 billion U.S. dollars) for the 2018 fiscal year as the country seeks to strengthen its missile defense capabilities in the face of growing missile threats from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), as well as China's increasing maritime activities.

"We are aware of the reports and are concerned about this," said Hua Chunying, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In recent years, Japan has been exaggerating the "China threat" to find or devise excuses for its increase in military weaponry and defense budget, Hua said.

China should be on high alert to Japan's moves and its real motives, the spokesperson said.

The international community, especially Japan's Asian neighbors, has closely followed the country's military moves, she said.

She advised Japan to learn from history and stop hyping up the "China threat."

Hua said China appreciates the courage of insightful Japanese who have revealed the historical truth and called for peace, through means such as a recent documentary on Okunoshima, an island where poison gas was manufactured by Japan for use against China during World War II.

The documentary attracted a great deal of attention after its broadcast on Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS), along with another documentary about Japanese Unit 731 released earlier by public broadcaster NHK. The two films revealed the irrefutable truth about Japan's war crimes and prompted heated discussions among Japanese society.

Japanese abandoned chemical weapons on Chinese territory still threaten the safety of Chinese citizens, their property and the ecological environment, even though the war ended 70 years ago, Hua said.

Hua requested Japan fulfil its obligations to destroy its abandoned chemical weapons as soon as possible.