(April 21, 1957)
I agree with your opinion. A place you cannot go up to while wearing shoes, you can go up to if you take them off. The Taiwan issue is a difficulty, and it may take a longer time; it is an obstacle between our two countries, but it is no great matter if it is resolved a bit later. We must try our best, but also be prepared for it to be later. Because this is not a Jiang Jieshi issue, but an American issue. The Japan issue is also an American issue, and China's Taiwan is also an American issue. This American issue must be resolved on a worldwide scale. The United States has set up military bases all over Japan; it has them not only in Japan, but in many places in the world. For Japan to eliminate military bases, it needs friends from all sides, it needs cooperation with all sides, but Japan has great strength, and it is possible to break through first from Japan; it is possible for Japan to be the first to strive for complete independence. There are ten major industrialized nations in the world, and Japan is one of them. China does not yet count, and India does not count either, because we have not yet industrialized. A country such as yours cannot be controlled by a foreign country for a long time. China's strength will grow; it is not yet sufficient now, but there is hope. The growth of China's strength is beneficial to you. The current situation is that there is not much good business to be done; China is very poor, what do we have to exchange with you? Only after another seven, eight, or ten years will it be possible for us to do more business with you.
[i] Parts one to three of this piece are a portion of Mao Zedong's conversation during his meeting with the Japan Socialist Party's Goodwill Mission to China, led by Asanuma Inejirō.

The Soviet Union has proposed to first stop testing before concluding an agreement on stopping the use, reducing the production, and mutually supervising atomic bombs. If Britain wants to test, it can test in its own country; it should not bring them to the East to test. Therefore, China's peace organizations can support your national movement. The Pacific Ocean belongs to the people of the East; Britain's actions are obstructing us, so we can make our position known to Britain. All Asian countries fear the atomic bomb, just like you.
There is still the American issue. So even if the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty is abolished, Japan becomes completely independent and autonomous, and Japan, the Soviet Union, China, and all Asian countries have peace treaties, the problem still cannot be solved. We can try to persuade the United States, but the United States may not listen. The United States still exists in the world; this is an objectively existing force. I think your line is completely correct; it is a line of friendship among Asian and African countries, not one of establishing an alliance with Western countries. Historically, you have established alliances with the West, such as with Britain. The Anglo-Japanese Alliance was still an alliance of equals, but now you have established an unequal alliance with the United States. The only path now is not to cooperate with the United States, but to be at peace and friendship with Asian countries. But the United States has the atomic bomb; what do you do if it wants to fight a war? So defense is still necessary, and you need it too. All other countries are obedient, but the United States is not; what do you do? The United States has two paths: one is to be obedient, which is very good; the other is not to listen. It would be best if the whole world could unite and make the United States listen. The Soviet Union has already proposed to stop nuclear testing; the problem is what to do if the United States does not stop?
A new phenomenon has appeared after the Second World War, which is that the power of the United States has grown strong, which is the opposition between the United States and the people of the whole world. Now American military bases are not only in your one country, but also in our Taiwan, and in Europe, Africa, and Asia. The United States establishes military bases wherever it goes; this is very conspicuous. Of course, the United States also makes atomic bombs and hydrogen bombs; in the future China will also make them, Japan will also make them, and India will also make them, but the United States is not afraid of us; it is faster than us, and its quantity is greater than ours. Of course, it is the best policy for no one to have atomic bombs; for them to have them and for us to have them too is the middle policy; for only it to have them is the worst policy. Since the United States has them, and the Soviet Union also has them, this makes it so that a war cannot be fought. If only it had them, it could use them to intimidate people; whichever country it showed them to would have to follow it. Let us look at the American way of doing things: in South and Central America, there is the Pan-American Pact; to oppose Japan, the United States formed a triangular alliance with Australia and New Zealand; to deal with China and the Soviet Union, it created a Japan-U.S. Security Treaty with Japan; it also created the Southeast Asia Treaty in Southeast Asia, and the Baghdad Pact in the Middle East; in Africa, it wants to bring down Nasser[1]; in Europe, it created the North Atlantic Treaty. The United States has dozens of hands, hundreds of hands, controlling many places; South Korea has its military bases, and it also controls Taiwan.
There is one more point I would like to talk about, which is the question of the people's power. The people's power will certainly overcome the anti-people forces. For example, what power does the Socialist Party have? It relies on the people. You do not have atomic bombs, nor are you in power, and in terms of money, you do not have big banks. Why was our Party able to seize political power? Why was it able to fight against an army with foreign aid? It was because of the people. When we were in Yan'an, we only had a few broken guns; the Guomindang had an army of over four million, and also had American aid, but we won. Take India as another example: Britain was very strong and had capital, but it also withdrew. This is the power of the people's movement; Nehru[2] relied on the power of the people to drive the British away. Britain had no way, so it had to leave. From this, a conclusion can be drawn: the United States has a lot of steel, and has atomic and hydrogen bombs, but as long as the people of the world unite, they can defeat the United States. The United States, politically, is unpopular; the people do not approve of the United States.
[1] Nasser was, at the time, President of the Republic of Egypt.
[2] Nehru was, at the time, Prime Minister of India.