U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hopes that Japan and its neighbors will work together for peace and prosperity based on "reflection and understanding of history," his spokesman said Friday.

The remark came in response to a statement that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe issued earlier Friday to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, in which the nationalist leader failed to offer a clear apology of his own for the country's wartime wrongdoings.

"The secretary-general has taken note of the message issued by the Prime Minister Abe marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and is studying it," Ban's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said during a daily briefing.

"As the secretary-general has said previously, he hopes that based on reflection and understanding of history, the countries concerned can achieve a genuine reconciliation and build peace and prosperity collectively in the region," he said. (Yonhap)