MOSCOW, August 11. /TASS/. Moscow urges Tokyo to refrain from any military preparations that may threaten security and stability in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Friday.
"August 11 marks the 85th anniversary of the end of the armed conflict with militaristic Japan at Lake Khasan," Zakharova said in a commentary on the 85th anniversary of the events near Lake Khasan. "This provocation made the aggressive plans of the Japanese military against the Soviet Union abundantly clear."
"As we remember this memorial date, we once again urge Tokyo to fully recognize the outcome of World War II, abandon the practice of spontaneous trips by representatives of the [country’s] political establishment, including current members of the Cabinet, to the Yasukuni Shrine, which is a symbol of Japanese militarism, as well as abandon military preparations that threaten the security architecture and strategic stability in the Asia-Pacific region," she said.
"Reviewing such historical lessons is especially important nowadays, when Japanese Prime Minister [Fumio] Kishida’s administration is actively taking steps to deviate from the decades-old policy of so-called peaceful development to put the country on track for accelerated demilitarization," Zakharova added.