Update: China lodges protest with Japan over textbooks

Xinhua
25 Mar 2026, 17:46 GMT+10

BEIJING, March 25 (Xinhua) -- China has lodged a serious protest with the Japanese side concerning distorted narratives related to history in Japan's textbooks to be used by high school students from 2027, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian said on Wednesday.

It was reported that Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on March 24 reviewed high school textbooks to be used from 2027. Some textbooks include descriptions suggesting there was no coercion regarding comfort women and forced labor, and assert that Diaoyu Dao is "Japan's inherent territory."

"To obscure historical facts, play down Japan's war crimes and seek to evade responsibility by playing on words when reviewing textbooks is Japan's go-to tactic to deny and distort its history of aggression," Lin said at a regular news briefing.

He said China strongly deplores and firmly opposes Japan's move and has lodged a serious protest with the Japanese side.

"We seriously urge the Japanese side to look history in the eye, make a clean break with militarism, allow the young generation in Japan to know the true history," he said, adding that Japan should properly handle historical issues in a responsible attitude and avoid further losing the trust of its Asian neighbors and the international community.

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