Japan has begun destroying chemical weapons abandoned in China by the Imperial Japanese Army at the end of World War II, Hideo Hiraoka, senior vice minister of the Cabinet Office, announced Wednesday in Nanjing.

Hiraoka, a Democratic Party of Japan lawmaker, said during a ceremony that the Japanese government will continue taking measures to speed up the destruction of abandoned munitions, the state-controlled Xinhua news agency reported.

"Today's move marks a new phase in the disposal of abandoned chemical weapons in China, in which the work has shifted from excavation and recovery to destruction," he said. "This is the result of years of efforts made by Japanese and Chinese authorities, and will have far-reaching effects on the bilateral relationship."

The project began in accordance with a bilateral agreement in July 1999 that Japan would provide money, technology and facilities to dispose of the weapons.