25 U.S. congressmen send joint letter urging Abe's apology

A bipartisan group of U.S. congressmen have sent a jointly signed letter to Tokyo, urging Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to apologize for his country's past wartime atrocities.

In the letter sent on Thursday to Kenichiro Sasae, Japan's ambassador to the United States, the House lawmakers called for Abe to "lay the foundation for healing and humble reconciliation by addressing the historical issues." They also demanded the Japanese leader "squarely face history" during his scheduled visit to Washington next week.

Spearheaded by Rep. Mike Honda (D-California), former head of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, the letter is endorsed by 24 other lawmakers, including Representatives Edward Royce (R-California), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), head of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

Meanwhile, the Chinese foreign ministry strongly criticized Thursday's visit by three Japanese cabinet ministers to the controversial Yasukuni war shrine in Tokyo, urging Japan "to reflect on its history of aggression." It also exhorted Japan to make "a clean break with militarism."