Compared with Braun's sincerity, Motohide Yoshikawa, Japan's Ambassador to the UN simply admitted "our actions brought suffering to the peoples in Asian countries."

"We must not avert our eyes from that," said Yoshikawa.

Japan's lack of sincerity in reflecting its war crimes has provoked dissatisfaction from some countries.

An Myong Hun, deputy permanent representative of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to the UN, said "Japan, an enemy state and a defeated state that had occupied Asian countries during the war and committed unimaginable crimes against humanity, has not yet made recognition, apology and reparations for its crimes in a clearly convincing manner."

"The scourge left by the Second World War in Asia remains unremoved even 70 years after the War," he said.

The UNGA special meeting was proposed in a UNGA resolution, which was adopted by consensus at the 69th session of the 193-member assembly in February, aiming to urge the international community not to forget wartime sacrifices and atrocities.

UNGA President Sam Kutesa said in his remarks to the meeting that the Second World War was a time of "unspeakable atrocities," and to prevent the recurrence of such tragic events, the UN was established to ensure unity and harmony among nations.

"The Second World War showed us the darkest side of humanity," said Britain's Ambassador to the UN Matthew Rycroft. "In this 70th anniversary year of the United Nations, let us never forget the very first line in our UN Charter, our pledge to 'save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.'"