Guidance by the Military Affairs Commission
Shall Be Limited to Putting Forward the
Overall Orientation
(March 8, 1938, 4:00 P.M.)

Zhu [De] and Peng [Dehuai]; Chen [Guang] and Luo [Ronghuan]; He [Long],
Xiao [Ke], and Guan [Xiangying]; Liu [Bocheng], Xu [Xiangqian], and Deng
[Xiaoping]; and Nie [Rongzhen]:

1. Guidance by the Military Affairs Commission shall consist only in putting
forward the overall strategic orientation. It is up to Zhu and Peng to carry out the
concrete deployments in the light of this orientation and the present circumstances.
Sometimes, the Military Affairs Commission advances opinions regarding specific combat operations, but these are merely suggestions. It is up to Zhu and Peng
to take the decisions on the basis of the situation and the enemy's dispositions,
without interference from the Military Affairs Commission.
2. Concerning the positions of the enemy and ourselves and the circumstances of
the combat, besides the reports sent by Headquarters¹ to the Military Affairs Commission as the occasion demands, each division should also send a copy of its telegraphic combat report to the Headquarters to the Military Affairs Commission, so
that the Military Affairs Commission will be fully informed regarding the situation.

Mao Zedong

Our source for this text is Mao Zedong junshi wenji, Vol. 2, pp. 190–91, where it is reproduced from a copy in the Central Archives.
1. I.e., by the General Headquarters of the Eighth Route Army.