On the afternoon of August 12, 2003, Vice Foreign Minister Wang Yi called in Koreshige Anamia, Japanese Ambassador to China, and lodged solemn representations again on the leaking of chemical weapons left by Japan in Qiqihar, Heilongjiang Province.

Wang said the Japanese chemical weapons left in Qiqihar have seriously injured local citizens and affected their normal lives. At present, the Chinese side is doing its best to save the people wounded and fully cleanse the affected areas.

Wang said the chemical weapons abandoned by Japanese troops in China are irrefutable evidence of Japanese militaristic aggression against China. They had claimed the lives of many Chinese, and still seriously threaten and harm the lives of Chinese citizens and the local environment. Wang emphasized that the Chinese government has always put the life and health of the people first and it will not allow such situation to continue.

Wang said that the Chinese government has noticed that the Japanese side has said it attaches importance to the serious issue and has promised to deal with it properly and with sincerity. China urges the Japanese government to take immediate action, shoulder its responsibility and deal with problems arising from the issue. According to an agreement between China and Japan, the Japanese government has formally taken on the responsibility for destroying abandoned chemical weapons in China. The Chinese side urges the Japanese government to attach great importance to the seriousness and urgency of this issue and implement the Convention on the Banning of Chemical Weapons and the memorandum on the destruction of the chemical weapons abandoned by Japanese troops in China. The Japanese side should quicken its steps in dealing with the issue in a responsible manner and remove as early as possible the "cancer" that has injured and threatened the security of the Chinese people.