China's foreign ministry has lodged a protest with Japan after a Japanese minister yesterday visited a shrine which is seen by critics as a symbol of Tokyo's wartime aggression.

China has repeatedly expressed anger over Japanese politicians' visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, where Japanese leaders convicted as war criminals after the Second World War are honoured along with those who died in battle.

China's foreign ministry said the visit again showed Japan's cabinet had the "wrong attitude" when it came to facing up to history.