Just as the Kuomintang had agreed to convene a Political Consultative Conference, putting on a show as if it sought peace through negotiation, the largest battle of the undeclared civil war was about to break out around Shanhaiguan. The first salient feature of this campaign was that the Kuomintang had concentrated all its most elite units there. A total of six army corps—namely the 13th, 91st, 94th, 16th, and 51st Armies, with the designation of another remaining to be confirmed—had either been transferred to the area or were being readied for deployment. Five of these corps were slated to attack along the Shanhaiguan front, while the 91st Army was to strike into Rehe as a supporting operation. Another defining characteristic of this campaign was its most blatant manifestation of armed U.S. intervention in China’s internal affairs. All these Kuomintang forces were transported by U.S. ships and aircraft with U.S. assistance. The base at Qinhuangdao, south of Shanhaiguan, where the Nationalist troops were massed, had been set up entirely by the U.S. military and continued to be garrisoned by American forces for its protection. Moreover, under the pretext of “preparing for a counteroffensive against Japan,” these Nationalist armies had been equipped with American weaponry, trained by U.S. officers, and now included American military advisers directly involved in command at various echelons; in some units, every regiment had ten U.S. officers, and each battalion one. The U.S. garrison supplied these Nationalist forces with heavy weapons—artillery, tanks, and aircraft—and provided them with ammunition, food, and gasoline; virtually every item was delivered by U.S. naval vessels and aircraft. Even the coal used by these troops came from mines safeguarded by U.S. forces and was transported via railways likewise under U.S. protection. Without the so-called “non-interference” of the U.S. forces stationed in China—without their claims of “not taking sides in the Chinese civil war,” “not wishing to see strife within China,” and “not assisting the central government in its anti-communist struggle”—how could this unprecedented Battle of Shanhaiguan have been launched? To claim that the U.S. forces’ actions were aimed at disarming Japan and repatriating Japanese nationals is utterly beside the point; it is a case of talking at cross purposes. General Wedemeyer repeatedly asserted that he was “protecting American lives and property,” yet he simultaneously placed numerous Americans within the ranks of the Nationalist army, sending them to forward positions and into the very midst of enemy fire where death was ever-present. Is this truly “protecting American lives”? To have American soldiers perish not in a just war against Japan, but in a reactionary civil conflict designed to thwart the Chinese people’s independence and freedom—what sense or value can there possibly be in that?

The Xinhua News Agency reporter calls upon all Chinese and Americans to take note: an unprecedented massacre is about to unfold around Shanhaiguan. This is a foul, sordid slaughter. In practical terms, it is not merely a Chinese civil war; it amounts to a war waged by the U.S. forces in China against the Chinese people. It must be stopped immediately! People from all sectors in both China and the United States should promptly dispatch fact-finding missions to the region and unite in every possible way to halt this carnage. Let us act without delay to prevent the imminent great battle at Shanhaiguan and to rescue the tens of thousands of Chinese and American sons and daughters who are being herded toward the slaughterhouse! Oppose the Kuomintang’s offensive against the liberated areas! Oppose armed interference in China’s internal affairs!