BEIJING » China has opened an exhibition commemorating the World War II victory over Japan as part of a propaganda push to mark the observance of the 70th anniversary of the war’s end in Asia.

Soldiers and children stood in silence Tuesday outside the museum in suburban Beijing at the opening of the "Great Victory and Historical Contribution" exhibition. It’s the 78th anniversary of the Marco Polo Bridge Incident, considered by many to be the start of China’s war with Japan.

China continues to feud with Japan over wartime history and competing claims to islands in the East China Sea.

The Communist Party’s propaganda chief Liu Yunshan said at the exhibition opening that it displays "the bravery of all Chinese people in the anti-Japanese war."