Q: Japanese media Sankei Shimbun reported on January 23 that the Japanese Government decided to freeze the construction of the disposal facilities for the destruction of Japanese-abandoned chemical weapons in Harbaling for three years to come, and reduce funding for the destruction by a large margin. How do you comment on this?

A: China has already asked Japan for clarification. The Japanese side has expressed explicitly that the Sankei Shimbun report is not consistent with facts. The Japanese Government's policy on accelerating the processing of Janpanese-abandoned chemical weapons has remained unchanged. We hope that the Japanese Government will honor its commitment.