BEIJING - A mainland spokesperson on Saturday denounced Taiwan's leader Lai Ching-te for deliberately avoiding discussion about the historical fact that Taiwan returned to China from Japanese occupation in 1945.

Zhu Fenglian, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, made the remarks in response to a media inquiry regarding Lai hyping up "confrontation and threat" while people from all walks of life in Taiwan gathered to commemorate the 79th anniversary of Taiwan's restoration on Friday.

Taiwan's restoration and its return to the motherland is an important achievement of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression by all Chinese people, including Taiwan compatriots, and should be remembered by compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, Zhu said.

At such a crucial moment, Lai and his ilk, on one hand, deliberately avoided discussing the historical fact of Taiwan's return to China; on the other hand, deliberately distorted the history of the Chinese civil war and incited cross-Strait confrontation, which once again fully exposed their nature of seeking "independence," Zhu said.

The history of Taiwan's return to China cannot be forgotten, and the historical trend of the inevitable reunification of the two sides cannot be stopped, Zhu said.

She called on Taiwan compatriots to go with the tide of history, oppose "Taiwan independence" secession and foreign interference, and join hands with the mainland to safeguard peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and pursue peaceful reunification.