Statement About a Cease-fire and
Resistance to Japan
(October 15, 1936)
The Central Soviet Government and the Military Affairs Commission of the
People's Red Army have issued the following order:
1. All Red Army units shall cease all hostile actions against the National
Revolutionary Army.
2. Only when attacked is it permitted to take the necessary defensive measures.
3. All personnel and weapons seized during attacks on us by the National
Revolutionary Army while said army is fighting Japan shall be returned. Those
who wish to join the Red Army shall be allowed to do so.
4. When National Revolutionary Army forces are moving toward anti-Japanese
battlelines, any actions that would impede them are prohibited; in fact, all possible assistance must be given.


We have decided to launch an earnest appeal once again to all National
Revolutionary Army forces and the Nanjing government to cease fighting us and
to join hands in resisting Japan. The document requesting this is presently being
drafted.1 The situation at present in the three provinces of Chahar, Suiyuan, and
Shanxi is already extremely critical, and we urgently hope to cooperate with the
Nanjing government to achieve the objective of assisting Suiyuan in resisting
Japan and rescuing it from extinction. If the Nanjing government is truly able to
heed the nation's distress, halt the civil war, and send troops to fight Japan, the
Soviet [government] is willing to devote all its forces to assistance, and is also
willing to use the main forces of the Red Army as the vanguard in the fight to the
death against the Japanese bandits.


We have translated this text from the 1985 annual compendium of Wenxian he yanjiu, pp.
190-91, where it is noted that this is a statement by Mao in his capacity as chairman of the
Central Soviet Government, published through the Soviet News Agency. The version in
Mao Zedong ji, Vol. 5, pp. 81-82, reproduces the text as it appeared in Hongse Zhonghua,
no. 307 (October 22, 1936), and includes an introductory sentence by that newspaper,
which is omitted here.

--- Notes



1. The reference is obviously to the text which appears above under the date of
October 11.