FM: Japan ready to face up to history

Japan's new ruling party said it would be "courageous" in its handling of historical issues that have long impeded the nation's relationship with its neighbors.

"There are various thoughts inside the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), but the thought of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) is that we have the courage to face up to history, and we will look to the future," Katsuya Okada, Japan's foreign minister, told Hong Kong-based Phoenix TV in Shanghai on Tuesday.

He was responding to a question about the new government's policy toward China.