TOKYO, Oct. 18 -- The Chinese Embassy in Japan on Saturday condemned what it called Japan's latest negative moves at Yasukuni Shrine, saying Japanese leaders had sent ritual offerings and some cabinet members and lawmakers had visited it, according to Xinhua.

A spokesperson said Japan launched wars of aggression during World War II and committed heinous crimes, and called the shrine, which enshrines 14 Class-A war criminals, "a spiritual tool and symbol of Japanese militarism." Whatever excuses Japanese officials give for paying homage there, the spokesperson said, they cannot conceal an intent to rehabilitate war criminals, cover up wartime crimes, distort historical facts and speed Japan's remilitarization.

Xinhua's report of the stat...