The Honored History for a Shared Future of Humankind

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of

the People’s Republic of China to the Kingdom of Thailand

Zhang Jianwei

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Eighty years ago, the Chinese people, along with peace-loving people around the world, united in courageous battles against their common foes in the blood and fire of battlefields. It was a great victory in the anti-fascist war and a new era in human history ushered. In 1951, the Chinese government designated September 3 as the official memorial day for China’s victory in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression.  

Eighty years ago, the dark shadow of fascism descended upon the world,plunging human civilization into an unprecedented catastrophe. China was the principal battleground of that war in Asia. The Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression began the earliest and lasted the longest. It lasted 14 years and cost over 35 million Chinese military and civilian casualties.

It began with the September 18th Incident in 1931, when the Chinese people resisted Japanese aggression and launched the World Anti-Fascist War and ended with the complete victory of the World Anti-Fascist War, when Japan surrendered in September 1945 and the liberation of Taiwan in October 1945.

Over 1.5 million Japanese troops were annihilated, and official property losses and wartime costs incurred over $100 billion, with indirect economic losses reaching $500 billion. This was a historic contribution to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and a monumental milestone in the pursuit of human peace.

It’s particularly important note that the return of Taiwan to China is of a crucial part of the victory in World War II and an integral part of the post-war international order. A series of instruments with legal effect under international law, namely the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation affirm China’s sovereignty over Taiwan.

This is a solid fact rooted in history and the law and beyond any doubt. UN Resolution 2758 completely resolved the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, in the U.N., and precluded any possibility of creating“two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan.”Since then, the only reference to the Taiwan region in the U.N. is“Taiwan, Province of China.”

For 80 years, China has been committed to promoting world peace, contributing to global development, and safeguarding the international order. China firmly supports the international system with the United Nations at its core, the international order based on international law, and the basic norms governing international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence proposed by China have become the fundamental norms governing international relations and the foundamental principles of international law. As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China actively participates in UN peacekeeping operations.

Since 1990, over 50,000 personnel were sent for 30 UN peacekeeping operations in over 20 countries and regions around the world. China is the largest contributor of peacekeepers among the permanent members of the Security Council.China has actively facilitated the political settlement of hotspot issues such as the Ukraine crisis and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, making China’s contributions to restoring peace and saving lives..

Eighty years later, the peace dividend has fostered unprecedented prosperity, but the world still faces numerous challenges. Local conflicts and regional hotspots continue to recur, non-traditional security threats such as terrorism and climate change are becoming increasingly prominent. Unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise, bringing new uncertainties to world peace and development.

Faced with profound changes unseen in a century and a question raised by the world, by history, and by the times:“Where is humanity headed?”, China made a proposal of building of a community with a shared future for humankind. The action to deliver on this vision is the Belt and Road Initiative and the three global initiatives.

“Small yard with high fences” and “decoupling and severing links” will lead humanity into a dead end with no way out. Equality, openness, inclusiveness, win-win cooperation, and common prosperity are the only right choices.

Today, our commemoration of the victory is not to perpetuate hatred. Rather, we learn from history for the future ahead when people of all countries can enjoy lasting peace and stability.

Let’s uphold the historical consensus and safeguard the post-war order. History cannot be tampered with. All countries should jointly safeguard the victory of World War II and the post-war international order. We must uphold the one-China principle, firmly oppose any form of “Taiwan independence,” and resolutely resist any attempt to distort the history of aggression or glorify war crimes. We should draw on the light of history to illuminate the way forward and embed the concept of peace in the gene of human civilization.

Let’s resist bullying and defend international justice. History has taught us that power politics and the law of the jungle will ultimately drag humanity into the abyss. International rule of law can not be trampled upon, and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter must not be shaken. Only by adhering to the norms of international relations based on mutual respect, fairness, justice, and win-win cooperation can we uproot power politics and allow the sunshine of justice to shine upon the world.

Let’s improve global governance and build a shared future. The international community need jointly uphold true multilateralism, continuously promote an equal and orderly multipolar world, and inclusive economic globalization. We shall endeavor to push the global governance system toward an open, inclusive, clean and beautiful world that enjoys lasting peace, universal security, and common prosperity, turning people’s longing for a better life into reality.

Both China and Thailand are members of the Global South. We both love peace and pursue prosperity. We are exploring paths to modernization that suit our national realities. We both believe in multilateralism and oppose unilateralism and protectionism. We both stand for greater solidarity and cooperation and reject division and confrontation.

As we stand at the new historical starting point of the 50th anniversary of China-Thailand diplomatic relations, China is ready to work with Thailand to deepen our comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in all respects for a more stable, more prosperous and more sustainable China-Thailand community with a shared future, and take the lead in fostering a community with a shared future for mankind.

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