(September 1, 1939)

(Special report from our correspondent, September 4.) On September 1, our correspondent
called on Comrade Mao Zedong and asked him for his opinions on questions concerning
the present international situation and China's War of Resistance. Comrade Mao's replies
were as follows:

Correspondent: What is the significance of the nonaggression pact suddenly reached
between the Soviet Union and Germany?

Mao Zedong: The Soviet-German nonaggression pact is the result of the growing
socialist strength of the Soviet Union and the policy of peace persistently followed
by the Soviet Communist Party and the Soviet government. The signing of the pact
is no accident and has great political significance. This treaty has shattered the
intrigues by which the reactionary international bourgeoisie, represented by Chamberlain and Daladier, sought to instigate a Soviet-German war, has broken the
encirclement of the Soviet Union by the German-Italian-Japanese anti-Communist bloc, exposed the lies of this reactionary clique against communism and the
Communist International, strengthened peace between the Soviet Union and Germany, and safeguarded the progress of socialist construction in the Soviet Union.
In the East it deals a blow to Japan and helps China; it strengthens the position of
China's forces of resistance to Japan and deals a blow to the capitulators. Thus it
provides a basis for helping the people of the whole world to win freedom and
liberation. Such is the full political significance of the Soviet-German nonaggression pact.

Question: People do not yet realize that the Soviet-German nonaggression pact is
the result of the breakdown of the Anglo-Franco-Soviet talks, but think that the

Soviet-German pact caused the breakdown. Please explain why the Anglo-Franco-Soviet talks failed.

Answer: Purely because of a lack of good faith on the part of Britain and France.²
For the past several years, the reactionary international bourgeoisie, above all that
of Britain and France, has consistently pursued a reactionary policy, the so-called
policy of "nonintervention," toward the fascist aggression of Germany, Italy, and
Japan. The purpose of this policy is to connive at wars of aggression and to profit
from them. Consequently, Britain and France flatly rejected the Soviet Union's
repeated proposals for a genuine front against aggression. Instead, they adopted a
"noninterventionist" position and connived at German, Italian, and Japanese aggression, while they themselves stood on the sidelines. Their aim was to step forward and intervene when the belligerents had worn each other out. In pursuit of
this reactionary policy, they sacrificed half of China to Japan and the whole of
Abyssinia, Spain, Austria, and Czechoslovakia to Italy and Germany. In line with
this policy, they also intended to sacrifice the Soviet Union. This³ has already been
clearly revealed in the course of the recent Anglo-Franco-Soviet talks. These talks
lasted for more than four months, from April 15 to August 23, during which the
Soviet Union exercised the utmost patience. But, from start to finish, Britain and
France rejected the principle of equality and reciprocity; all they wanted was for
the Soviet Union to guarantee their security, while they refused to do likewise for
the Soviet Union and the Baltic states, so as to leave a gap through which Germany could attack. They also refused to allow the passage of Soviet troops through
Poland to fight the aggressor. That is the fundamental reason why the talks broke
down. Meanwhile, Germany gave up its anti-Soviet position, indicated its willingness to abandon in reality the so-called Anti-Comintern Pact, and recognized
the inviolability of the Soviet frontiers. Hence the conclusion of the Soviet-German
nonaggression pact. The policy of nonintervention pursued by the international
reactionaries, and primarily by the British and French reactionaries, is a policy of
sitting on top of the mountain and watching the tigers fight, a downright imperialist
policy of profiting at others' expense. This policy was initiated when Chamberlain
took office and reached its climax in the Munich agreement of September last year.
Thus it finally collapsed in the recent Anglo-French-Soviet talks. From now on,
the situation will inevitably develop into one of direct confrontation between the
two big imperialist blocs, the Anglo-French bloc and the German-Italian bloc. As
I said last year at the Sixth Plenum of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, "The inevitable consequence of Chamberlain's policy will be like

'lifting a rock only to drop it on one's own toes'." Chamberlain started out with the
aim of injuring others and benefiting himself, only to end up by harming himself.
This is the law of development which governs all reactionary policies.

Question: In your opinion, how will the present international situation develop?

Answer: At present, the international situation has already taken on a new aspect.
During the previous stage, the second imperialist war, which began some time ago,
had only a partial character, in the sense that, as a result of the policy of "nonintervention," one group of imperialist states attacked while another simply looked
on; as far as Europe is concerned, this will inevitably be replaced in the future by a
situation of all-embracing war. The second imperialist war has already entered the
second stage. In the East, although the situation is different, there will also be a
new stage. In Europe, a large-scale imperialist war is imminent between the German-Italian imperialist bloc and the Anglo-French imperialist bloc, which are contending for domination over the colonies. In this war, in order to deceive the people
and mobilize public opinion, both sides in the conflict will shamelessly declare
their own cause to be just and that of their opponents unjust. In fact, this is nothing
but a swindle, because the aims of both sides are imperialist aims; both are fighting
for domination over the colonies and semicolonies and over spheres of influence,
and both are waging a predatory war. At present, they are fighting over Poland, the
Balkan peninsula, and the Mediterranean littoral. The only just wars are
nonpredatory wars, wars of liberation. Communists most strongly oppose any predatory war. They will, however, bravely step forward to support every just and
nonpredatory war for liberation, and they will stand in the forefront of the struggle.
With Chamberlain and Daladier practicing intimidation and bribery, the socialdemocratic parties affiliated with the Second International are splitting up. One
section, the reactionary upper stratum, is following the same old disastrous road as
in the First World War and is ready to support the new imperialist war. But another
section will join with the Communists in forming a popular front against war and
fascism. At present, Chamberlain and Daladier are following in the footsteps of
Germany and Italy and are becoming more and more reactionary. Right now, they
are taking advantage of the war mobilization to fascistize the state organization of
their countries and to militarize the economy. In short, the two big imperialist blocs
are feverishly preparing for war, and millions of people are facing the danger of
mass slaughter. But such a situation cannot fail to arouse antiwar movements among
the masses. Whether in Germany or in Italy, Britain or France, or anywhere else in
Europe or the world at large, if the people do not want to be used as imperialist
cannon-fodder, they will have to rise up and oppose the imperialist war in every possible way. Apart from the two big blocs discussed above, there is a third bloc in
the capitalist world, headed by the United States and including a number of Central
and South American countries. In its own interests, this bloc will not be drawn into
the war, at least for the time being. As regards world peace, it can still work in
concert with the Soviet Union and play a somewhat positive role. In the name of
neutrality, American imperialism is refraining from joining either of the belligerents,
so as to be able to come on the scene later and contend for the leadership of the
capitalist world. The fact that the American bourgeoisie is not yet prepared to discard democracy and a peacetime economy at home is favorable to the world peace
movement. As for Japanese imperialism, which has been badly hit by the Soviet-German pact, it is facing a future beset with still greater difficulties. Two factions
within Japan are fighting over foreign policy. The fascist warlords are still contemplating an alliance with Germany and Italy for the purpose of gaining exclusive
control of China, invading Southeast Asia, and expelling Britain, the United States,
and France from the East. On the other hand, the liberal bourgeoisie would prefer
the policy of making concessions to Britain, the United States, and France in order
to concentrate on plundering China. At present, there is a strong tendency toward a
compromise between Britain and Japan. The British reactionary bourgeoisie 10
dreams of offering Japan the joint partition of China plus financial and economic
aid, on condition that Japan serve as the watchdog of British interests in the East,
suppress the Chinese national liberation movement, contain the Soviet Union, and
defend the United States. Consequently, no matter what happens, Japan's basic
aim of destroying China can absolutely never change. The possibility that Japan
will launch large-scale military offensives in some parts of China¹¹ may not be
very great, but it will step up its political offensive to "use Chinese to control
Chinese"12 and its economic plundering of China to "sustain the war by means of
war," while keeping up its frantic "mopping-up" campaigns in the occupied areas;
moreover, it wants to work through Britain to force China to surrender. At a favorable moment, Japan will propose an Eastern Munich and, with some relatively big
concessions as bait, will try to coax and bully China into accepting its terms under
duress, in order to attain its aim of subjugating China. No matter what cabinet
changes the Japanese ruling class may make, this imperialist aim will remain unchanged until the Japanese people rise in revolution. Outside the whole capitalist
world, there is a world of light, the socialist Soviet Union. The Soviet-German pact
has raised the international status of the Soviet Union, increased the capacity of the

Soviet Union to aid the world peace movement, to aid China in its War of Resistance, and to aid the liberation movements of all nations and peoples of the world.
Such is my appraisal of the international situation.

Question: In these circumstances, what are the future prospects for China?

Answer: There are two futures for China. One is a future of perseverance in the
War of Resistance, unity, and progress, which would be a future of national rejuvenation. The other is a future of compromise, splits, and retrogression, which would
be a future of national subjugation. In the new international situation, as the Japanese bandits 13 come up against increased difficulties and China resolutely refuses
to compromise, the stage of strategic retreat will end for us and that of strategic
stalemate will begin. This latter stage is that of preparation for the counteroffensive. But stalemate along the front means the reverse of stalemate in the enemy's
rear. As the possibility of a stalemate along the frontlines increases, the possibility
of a stalemate behind the enemy's lines will diminish. 14 Consequently, from now
on the large-scale "mopping-up" campaigns the enemy has been conducting in the
occupied areas-mainly in North China-since the fall of Wuhan will not only
continue, but will be intensified. Furthermore, since the enemy's main policy15
consists in his political offensive to "use Chinese to control Chinese" and in his
economic aggression to "sustain the war by means of war," and since a Far Eastern
Munich is the objective of British policy in the East, this will further increase
enormously the very great danger that China16 may be lured into surrender, and
that a split may be created. As for the relationship between China's internal
[strength] and that of the enemy, the difference is still very great, and unless the
whole country unites in an arduous struggle, it will be impossible to build up
strength for the counteroffensive. Therefore, China's task in the War of Resistance is still an extremely important task and must never be neglected in the slightest degree. Consequently, without any doubt whatsoever, China must on no account
miss the present opportunity or make a wrong decision, but must adopt a firm and
correct political standpoint. This means, first, taking a resolute stand in favor of
the War of Resistance and opposing any movement in favor of compromise. Resolute blows must be struck at all the Wang Jingweis, whether overt or covert. China
must firmly reject any blandishments, whether from the enemy17 or from Britain,
and must absolutely not participate in an Eastern Munich. Second, this means adhering firmly to the standpoint of unity and opposing any moves toward a split.
Strict vigilance must be maintained against such moves whether they stem from
the enemy, 18 from other foreign countries, or from the capitulators at home. All
friction19 harmful to the War of Resistance must be sternly checked. Third, this
means firm adherence to the stand of progress and opposition to any retrogression.
Whether in the military, political, financial, or economic sphere, in Party affairs,
or in the field of culture and education or the movements of the popular masses,
every theory, every institution, and every measure harmful to the war must be
reexamined and effectively changed to serve the War of Resistance and to respond to the aspirations of the entire country. If all this can be done, China will be
able to build up its strength very well for the counteroffensive. From now on, the
whole country must make "preparation for the counteroffensive" its overall task
in the War of Resistance. At present, it is necessary, on the one hand, earnestly to
sustain our defense along the frontlines and vigorously to assist the fighting behind the enemy lines and, on the other, to institute political, military, and other
reforms, and build up tremendous strength, so that when the moment comes, our
whole might can be thrown into a large-scale counteroffensive for the recovery of
our lost territories. In the diplomatic field, the unswerving principle should be to
treat those who support us as friends and those who support our enemy as enemies. For example, in the past, when Wang Jingwei and others proposed following the course of Germany and Italy, while Germany and Italy were assisting the
enemy, this was a completely erroneous theory of Chinese traitors. But if in the
future Germany and Italy abandon their policy of supporting the enemy, there is
no obstacle to approaching them, in order to weaken the enemy's strength. Again,
if Britain supports the enemy and builds him up, we absolutely cannot rely on it,
and must at all times be vigilant against its attempts to coerce and cajole us, in
order to avoid being pulled into a vortex and harming the War of Resistance. As
regards the Soviet Union, we should strengthen our friendship with it, and form a
united front between the great Chinese and Soviet nations, in order to obtain more
assistance from it, and consolidate the front of the War of Resistance. Our attitude
toward the United States should be more or less the same. But it should be clearly
understood that in all capitalist countries the most reliable friends supporting our
War of Resistance are the broad masses of the people, and not the governments of
these countries. In sum, the guiding principle for everything is whether it is advantageous for the War of Resistance. In the new international situation, as long as
China is able to adopt a firm stand and carry out correct policies, it can reach the
goal of final victory. Under the slogans of supporting Chairman Chiang and the
National Government, opposing surrender and persevering in unity, opposing splits
and persevering in progress, and opposing retrogression, the people of the whole country should mobilize all their forces and struggle to prepare for the counteroffensive! Whether or not China's future counteroffensive will be successful depends
on our standpoint and our work now. I hope that every patriotic party and faction,
every patriotic person will give serious consideration to these great issues affecting the country, shoulder their responsibilities, and stride forward toward a great
and brilliant future for the Chinese nation. The greatest struggle for liberation in
the history of mankind is unfolding today. As long as we make every effort, there
can be no doubt that the Chinese nation will win independence and liberation!

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Notes

This interview was first published in Xinhua ribao, September 6, 1939. We have translated
it from Mao Zedong ji, Vol. 7, pp. 9-16, which reproduces that text.
1. Mao Zedong, Leader of the Chinese Communist Party, on the Present International
Situation and China's War of Resistance → Interview with a New China Daily correspondent on the New International Situation
2. Britain and France → The British and French governments
3. This → This plot
4. The Baltic states → The little Baltic states
5. Gave up its anti-Soviet position → Showed willingness to stop opposing the Soviet
Union
6. Here the Selected Works text adds: "This war is not at all a just war."
7. Antiwar movements → Resistance movements
8. Is refraining → Is refraining temporarily
9. The liberal bourgeoisie → One section of the bourgeoisie
10. Reactionary bourgeoisie → Reactionaries
11. Military offensives in some parts of China → A frontal military offensive in China
12. Here Mao uses the expression yi Hua zhi Hua, a deliberate paraphrase of the policy
yiyi zhiyi, "using barbarians to control barbarians," i.e., playing off one Western nation
against another, advocated by some Chinese statesmen in the nineteenth century.
13. The Japanese bandits → Japan
14. As the possibility of a stalemate along the frontlines increases, the possibility of a
stalemate behind the enemy's lines will diminish. → As a situation of stalemate along the
frontlines emerges, the struggle behind the enemy's lines will become intense.
15. Main policy → Main policy at present
16. China → A great part of China
17. The enemy → Japan
18. The enemy → The Japanese imperialists
19. Friction → Internal friction