Report on the Situation of the Sino-Japanese War
(May 10, 1938)
[1]

At present, both Chiang Kai-shek and our own assessment hold that the War of Resistance will be a protracted one. Recently, however, two editorials in the Ta Kung Pao have shifted their stance, characterizing the battle in southern Shandong as a quasi-decisive engagement and denying that the Sino-Japanese War is a protracted struggle. In the past, there were also two differing views within our ranks regarding the nature of the Sino-Japanese War. I have consistently maintained that it will be a protracted war, for China is a large country that Japan cannot wholly annex; at the same time, being relatively weak, China must rely on a prolonged campaign to achieve victory.

[1] This is part of Mao Zedong’s report to the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee on the situation of the Sino-Japanese War.
[2] The Southern Shandong Campaign (also known as the Xuzhou Campaign), fought in April and May 1938, constituted the third phase of the Battle of Xuzhou. On April 25 of that year, an editorial in the Ta Kung Pao stated: “The current situation marks a critical juncture in the prospects of the War of Resistance. If we emerge victorious from this battle, its tangible and intangible effects will be tantamount to securing a decisive victory. All officers and soldiers, take note: what lies before us is a quasi-decisive engagement.” A subsequent editorial published on April 26 further declared: “This battle is certainly not the final decisive clash, yet it may still be regarded as a quasi-decisive one, for, from the perspective of the Japanese militarists, it represents their last desperate struggle.”