China urges Japan to reflect on history of aggression

China urges Japan to face up to and do soul-searching on its history of aggression, and show repentance for militaristic crimes and respect for the victims through concrete actions, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Friday.

Spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks at a daily press briefing, after a Russian foreign ministry spokesperson recently said Japan ought to construct a memorial hall dedicated to the victims of Japanese militarism to repent for its crimes.

"We appreciate Russia's statements. The Yasukuni Shrine is a spiritual tool and symbol of Japanese militarists' war of aggression. The shrine honors 14 convicted Class-A war criminals responsible for Japan's aggression in the 1930s and 40s. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. The Japanese side should face squarely and deeply reflect on Japan's history of aggression, take concrete actions to show remorse for the crimes committed by Japanese militarists and respect to the victims, and not further compound the wrongdoing," Lin said.

"China stands ready to work with the international community, including Russia, to firmly defend the outcomes of the WWII victory and the post-war international order, strictly prevent the resurgence of Japanese militarism and jointly safeguard world peace and stability," said the spokesman.

China urges Japan to reflect on history of aggression

The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) on Thursday lowered its key interest rates by 100 basis points, or 1 percent, the CBE reported.

The CBE said in a statement that its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to cut the deposit rate to 20 percent, the lending rate to 21 percent, and the rate of the main operation to 20.5 percent, while also reducing the discount rate to 20.5 percent.

"This decision reflects the committee's updated assessment of inflation dynamics and outlook since the previous MPC meeting," it said.

According to an earlier CBE report, annual urban headline inflation in Egypt eased slightly to 12.3 percent in November, down from 12.5 percent in October, driven by a slowdown in food price inflation, which declined to 0.7 percent in November from 1.5 percent a month earlier.

This marks the fifth interest rate cut by Egypt's central bank so far this year.

Egypt cuts key interest rates by 1 pct as inflation slightly down