People of all China! The Nationalist Party’s Nanjing government, with Chiang Kai-shek at its head, has, after surrendering Manchuria, Rehe, and Shanghai, now concluded the “North China Armistice Agreement” with the Japanese bandits, thereby selling Peiping–Tientsin and North China to Japanese imperialism! The so-called “North China Armistice Agreement” stipulates: (1) Chinese troops are to withdraw south of Peiping–Tientsin, designating the region south of the Great Wall as a buffer zone (the so-called neutral area); (2) the Chinese side recognizes the “Manchukuo” puppet state; (3) all activities of the Volunteer Armies and all anti-Japanese forces, as well as any development of anti-Manchukuo elements, are to be suppressed, and the arms of the Volunteer Armies and all other anti-Japanese units are to be confiscated; (4) the Chinese side undertakes to halt all anti-Japanese movements. This “North China Armistice Agreement,” finally decided upon at the Lushan Conference of the Nationalist traitors, was jointly signed on May 31st at Tanggu by representatives of Japanese imperialism and China’s treacherous warlord executioners, who celebrated their victory with a banquet. Outside Beijing, in Manchuria, Rehe, Chahar, and around Peiping–Tientsin, Japanese imperialists continue to bomb and massacre the anti-Japanese Volunteer Armies, revolutionary soldiers, and countless peaceful civilians with their artillery and aircraft, in order to establish “peace and order” under Japanese imperialist colonial slavery!

People of all China! Peiping–Tientsin and North China have been finally betrayed by the reactionary Nationalist Party! This is the true content of the Nationalist Party’s so-called “protracted resistance”; this is the essence of its policy of “resisting on one front while negotiating on another”; this is the Central Committee’s “already established line”! The wicked Nationalist Party, with Chiang Kai-shek as its chief culprit, has thus shamelessly and brazenly handed over entire Manchuria, Rehe, and Peiping–Tientsin—covering tens of millions of square li and encompassing tens of millions of people—to Japanese imperialism, and it is even now plotting to sell vast regions such as Kwangsi, Kwantung, Tibet, and Sinkiang to British imperialism.

People of all China! We are the masters of the Chinese nation. We will never permit Japanese imperialism or any other imperialist power to invade a single inch of our territory, nor will we allow the imperialists’ lackey, the Nationalist Party, to betray China so shamelessly and boldly! We must unite in solidarity, arm ourselves, and launch a national revolutionary war. Relying on the strength of four hundred million people, we shall overthrow imperialism and its lackey, the Nationalist Party warlords, beginning with the Nanjing government headed by Chiang Kai-shek! Only through the bloody struggle of all the Chinese people can we reclaim our lost lands and achieve national independence, liberation, and territorial integrity for the Chinese nation. The Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic and the Revolutionary Military Commission have repeatedly proposed to the armed forces attacking the Chinese Soviet areas that they enter into a combat agreement under the following three conditions to resist Japanese imperialist aggression: (1) immediately cease attacks on the Soviet areas; (2) immediately guarantee the democratic rights of the people; (3) immediately arm the people and form armed volunteer armies to defend China and strive for its independence, unity, and territorial integrity. However, the Nationalist Party’s response to this call from the Soviet government has been further capitulation and betrayal to Japanese imperialism: forcing the anti-Japanese soldiers in Northeast China to retreat, disarming the Northeast Volunteer Army, suppressing all anti-Japanese and anti-imperialist movements throughout China, organizing new forces to attack our Soviet areas, and dispatching large numbers of aircraft to bomb the working masses and peaceful residents within those areas. At the same time, they shamelessly spread lies, claiming that the Nationalist Party cannot take up arms against Japan because of the existence of the Soviet regime—that the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army “obstructs the war of resistance”—and that “China lacks the strength to resist,” hence “we are forced to make the painful decision to cease hostilities.”

Now every worker, every peasant, every soldier, every student, and every revolutionary can plainly see for themselves who truly obstructs the war of resistance, who is a traitor, and who serves as an imperialist lackey. Unless we overthrow the Nationalist Party, China will perish, and its people will forever be reduced to imperialist slaves! The Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic calls upon all the people of China, the Northeast Volunteer Army, the anti-Japanese soldiers of Northeast China, all revolutionary students, intellectuals, professionals, and every revolutionary to unite in solidarity, arm themselves, and launch a national revolutionary war. Defying all oppression and massacres by imperialist agents and Nationalist police and military forces, and disobeying the Nationalist Party’s orders to retreat under the guise of an armistice, let us fight against Japanese imperialist aggression, against the Nationalist Party’s betrayal of China, and for the independence and liberation of the Chinese nation!

In the course of four bloody campaigns that have completely shattered the imperialist and Nationalist sieges of the Soviet areas, the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic is establishing extensive revolutionary base areas across China, forging a million-strong Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army, and preparing to converge along the Yangtze River to engage in direct combat with Japanese imperialism and all other imperialist powers. Through its long years of struggle against imperialism and the Nationalist Party, the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic and its Red Army have demonstrated to all the people of China that only they represent the genuine political power of the masses opposed to imperialism and the Nationalist Party, and that only they are capable of leading the entire Chinese people to overthrow Japanese imperialism and all other imperialist forces, as well as the Nationalist Party led by Chiang Kai-shek—the very force that has betrayed China—and all other Nationalist warlord traitors.

People of all China! Unite, arm yourselves, and join forces with the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic to expand the national revolutionary war, reclaim the lost territories of Northeast China, defend our country, and strive for the independence and liberation of the Chinese nation! Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Provisional Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic; Xiang Ying, Vice Chairman; June 1, 1933