January 7, 1940. Japan is actively seeking to induce China to surrender. German Ambassador Oskar Trautmann has already sent a telegram to the Chinese authorities urging peace negotiations. Within China, pro-Japanese conspirators and instigators of civil war are vigorously at work, encircling and pressuring the government to launch a civil war and capitulate. The aim of Japan and its collaborators is to sow division in China, set the Kuomintang and the Communist Party against each other, bring about mutual destruction, and thereby enable them to reap the benefits while others fight. The situation has reached an extremely critical stage. The entire Party must mobilize to oppose surrender and secession, and to avert this grave crisis.  (1) We must swiftly rally all active elements inside and outside the Party and, by word of mouth, in writing, through illustrations, letters, telegrams, and every other possible means, directly or indirectly address the political leadership, the Kuomintang, the armed forces, and all parties, groups, and sectors, earnestly and vigorously explaining that suppressing the Communists will lead to the ruin of both the party and the nation; that surrender will inevitably fragment China, disintegrate the anti-Japanese forces, destroy the reputation of the supreme commander of the resistance, and plunge the entire people into a state of servitude like cattle and horses. These are precisely the schemes of Japan, the machinations of pro-Japanese conspirators and civil-war instigators. We must never fall for such tricks. When the clam and the plover contend, only the fisherman profits; when guns are turned inward, it serves only to grieve friends and delight enemies. The Communist Party has always cherished Chiang Kai-shek, the Kuomintang, our friendly forces, and all anti-Japanese parties, groups, and individuals. What we demand is steadfast unity in the war of resistance—no surrender, no division, no civil war. On this basis, we will implement all the declarations made in our Party Central Committee’s July 7th Manifesto this year, as well as our longstanding united-front policies, and remain committed to uniting with the Kuomintang and with all parties, groups, sectors, and military units until the very end. Should they, through momentary carelessness, fall into the enemy’s trap and bring about the ruin of their party and country, then we shall be powerless to help. As for the pro-Japanese faction and the instigators of civil war, the Communist Party, the Eighth Route Army, the New Fourth Army, and the Chinese people as a whole can never tolerate them. To all our anti-Japanese friends, however, we continue to extend our utmost goodwill. Now, at this life-or-death juncture, we feel bound to offer our most sincere counsel. At the same time, we call upon all parties, groups, sectors, and military units to pay close attention to the recent development in Henan: approximately one hundred thousand troops are advancing toward the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army, creating an imminent threat of civil war. Everyone should demand that the government halt these military movements and prevent the outbreak of civil war.  (3) When carrying out propaganda, Party members and activists both within and outside the Party should be mindful of their tone. Do not vilify Chiang Kai-shek, the Kuomintang, the Central Army or the Whampoa clique, the so-called “local” armies, the Youth League, or the Revival Society. Nor should you attack Britain and the United States or those aligned with them. (Of course, we cannot agree to join the Anglo-American camp, since it is an imperialist war bloc; but that is not the central issue of our present struggle.) Instead, concentrate all your energy on denouncing the pro-Japanese conspirators and the civil-war instigators, emphasizing Japan’s plot to force surrender, loudly proclaiming slogans against surrender and civil war, advocating “Guns pointed outward—Chinese shall not fight Chinese,” and calling upon the entire nation to unite to stop surrender and civil war and drive out the pro-Japanese elements. Our attitude must be sincere, vigorous, and impassioned. We should spare no effort, going everywhere to cry out, even at the risk of exhaustion, demonstrating that we are patriotic patriots and loyal friends dedicated to rallying the whole nation in defense of our nationhood. In these tense times, the central task of the entire Party is to oppose surrender and civil war. Whereas previously our main focus was on combating the diehards, we must now shift our primary efforts to attacking the pro-Japanese faction and the civil-war instigators, striking decisively at their core. Once they are defeated, it will become much more difficult for the diehards to push for surrender.  (4) Who exactly constitutes the pro-Japanese conspirators and the civil-war instigators? This must be determined on the basis of concrete evidence in each locality. Nationally, their leader is the pro-Japanese group headed by He Yingqin. This group maintains secret ties with Japan and Wang Jingwei and is currently surrounding Chiang Kai-shek, urging him to issue an order to suppress the Communists and to deploy troops for that purpose. Their objective is to carry out Japan’s instructions, ignite a war between the Kuomintang and the Communists, allow the Japanese forces to extricate themselves from the Chinese quagmire and turn their attention to Britain and the United States, and ensure that, following a civil war, China will inevitably surrender. However, to achieve nationwide surrender, they must first drag Chiang down with them. Therefore, the pro-Japanese faction has been supporting Chiang’s anti-Communist policy and energetically assisting him in his anti-Communist campaign. They believe that once the anti-Communist war breaks out, Chiang will find himself cornered, unable to retreat, and thus compelled to surrender. Afterward, they intend for Japan to discard Chiang and install themselves as China’s Pétain. Such is the entirety of He Yingqin and his associates’ conspiracy. It follows, then, that Chiang and his circle face an extremely high risk of being ensnared by the pro-Japanese faction and led from anti-Communism to surrender. This is Chiang’s principal danger, and we must remain highly vigilant, taking absolutely no chances of falling into his trap. For the time being, however, Chiang still stands at the crossroads of three major international alignments and three paths for China: either surrender, join the Anglo-American camp, or continue an independent war of resistance. He has not yet resolved to act as a Pétain, so we must continue to win him over in order to prolong the resistance, even if only for a short while. At present, the most dangerous elements are the pro-Japanese faction and the civil-war instigators led by He Yingqin. The entire Party should publicly expose the vast conspiracy hatched by He Yingqin and his cohorts before all parties, groups, sectors, and military units, using every available means to make their crimes known, arousing universal indignation and repulsion. For the time being, we may refrain from explicitly naming He Yingqin in public writings.  (5) We must intensify our united-front work. We need to make it more concrete, seizing every opportunity to establish contact with every potential partner. We should study how best to approach each specific entity and collaborate with it to combat surrender and civil war. Let us not set the bar too high; even a small, informal verbal agreement can be valuable. We must regularly review our work, examining its weak points at every moment. A meticulous analysis of the specific circumstances of each social stratum, party, military unit, organization, and individual will reveal underlying contradictions and possibilities. We must avoid succumbing to a sense of hopeless chaos, closing ourselves off, or shrinking back—none of these approaches is acceptable.  (6) All Party organizations operating within Kuomintang-controlled areas must strictly adhere to the Central Committee’s previous directives: they must be completely concealed and organized, preparing for a long-term clandestine existence, accumulating strength and waiting for the opportune moment. In every region, precautions must be taken against sudden emergencies, and the organizations must be able to withstand such attacks.  (7) With regard to all our Eighth Route Army and New Fourth Army anti-Japanese base areas, we must persist in a long-term, independent, self-reliant war of resistance. At the same time, we must be prepared to confront any serious anti-Communist offensive and fully ready to thwart the joint pincer movement plotted by Japan and its collaborators.  (8) We must also inform all active Party members and anti-Japanese personnel that, as long as everyone rises up to engage in resolute and appropriate action, it is still possible—and there is still time—to prevent surrender and civil war. Therefore, our Party and the Chinese people as a whole must strive to stop both surrender and civil war. Every additional effort our Party and the people make today to oppose surrender and civil war is one more step toward victory tomorrow. The ultimate outcome of the current situation will depend largely on the policies and actions of our Party.  (9) Regardless of how the situation unfolds, final victory will undoubtedly belong to China and its people. Our Party commands a force of half a million soldiers, has six hundred thousand members, enjoys broad sympathy throughout the country, and counts many moderates among our potential allies or neutral supporters. We also benefit from the powerful support of the Soviet Union, from the brewing global revolutionary movement, from unprecedented tensions among the imperialist powers, from severe internal difficulties within the ranks of our adversaries, and from deep-seated conflicts within the pro-Japanese camp, among the diehards, between the diehards and the moderates, and within various factions. All these factors give us firm confidence that ultimate victory will surely belong to China and its people. No matter how dark the circumstances may seem, our Party possesses every necessary condition to ultimately overcome them. Any darkness in the world or in China is temporary. Only a revolutionary party and a revolutionary people, united firmly through resolute struggle, can achieve final victory. This confidence must be firmly established and strengthened throughout the Party and among the entire population. All pessimistic doubts and wavering sentiments that arise within and outside the Party must be resolutely suppressed.