Japan's foreign minister Taro Aso called China a military threat Sunday, while a top government spokesman rebuffed conciliatory gestures by Beijing over a controversial war shrine.

Aso, who has angered China in recent months with a series of critical comments, questioned China's military spending increases and said it lacked of transparency.

"It's not clear what China is using the money for. This creates a sense of threat for surrounding countries," Aso said on a Fuji television talk show.

Chinese officials have insisted that their country is open about spending and has increased military exchanges with other countries.

President Hu Jintao of China made a conciliatory gesture last week by offering to hold a summit meeting with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi if he ended his visits to the Yasukuni shrine, which honors Japan's 2.5 million war dead, including convicted war criminals.

Beijing has refused top-level talks since Koizumi last visited the shrine in October 2005, calling his actions offensive for Chinese victims of Japan's aggression before and during World War II.

Japanese leader's shrine visit has hurt the feelings of Chinese people and damaged the political foundation of Sino-Japanese relations, said President Hu when meeting several visiting Japanese organizations.

But the chief Japanese cabinet spokesman, Shinzo Abe, a front-runner to succeed Koizumi when his term runs out in September, rejected that offer Sunday on the Fuji TV talk show.

"It is wrong for China to refuse talks just over one problem," he said.

(China Daily April 3, 2006)