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Japan ‘killed Australians’ during WWII, warns Chinese envoy to Australia: ‘be careful about what might happen in future’

  • ‘China has been your friend’, Chinese ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian said on Tuesday as he cautioned against trusting Japan
  • Xiao had bristled when asked about Japan’s ambassador to Australia, who told a newspaper that there was a need to remain ‘vigilant’ of China

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Xiao Qian, China’s ambassador to Australia, addresses the media during a news conference at the Chinese embassy in Canberra on Tuesday. Photo: EPA-EFE
Agence France-Presse
China on Tuesday said Australia should remember Japan’s war crimes during World War II before cosying up to the East Asian nation.

Australia’s centre-left government has been trying to repair its relationship with China, which soured considerably under the former conservative government.

But it has also recently signed a new security pact with China’s regional rival Japan, seen as an attempt to limit Beijing’s muscle in the Pacific region.

China’s ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian said Canberra should be cautious about trusting Japan, given its attacks on Australia during World War II.

A US warship patrols off the coast of Darwin in northern Australia after a Japanese air strike in 1942. The smoke column on the left is from an exploding Australian ship said to have been loaded with bombs. Photo: AP
A US warship patrols off the coast of Darwin in northern Australia after a Japanese air strike in 1942. The smoke column on the left is from an exploding Australian ship said to have been loaded with bombs. Photo: AP

“During the Second World War Japan invaded Australia, bombed Darwin, killed Australians and shot Australian [prisoners of war],” Xiao told reporters.

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