North Korea today urged Japan to make apology and reparation for its past crimes to Pyongyang immediately. In a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency, a foreign ministry spokesman criticized the Japanese government for only apologizing to South Korea for its colonial rule but expressing no regret to the North. The spokesman said the past one centenary was the history in which Japan had committed crimes but refused to redeem them, and it was the history in which the Korean people suffered damage done by Japan. He said Japan can never shirk its obligation and it should make immediate apology for the hideous crimes committed against the Korean people.