The more we engage, the better we get to know each other. For any party or any nation, mutual understanding always requires a process. Even between individuals, it is rare to achieve complete clarity right away.

For a single nation or party, as well as for two nations or two parties, and indeed among the twelve fraternal parties and twelve peoples of our sister countries, mutual understanding develops gradually over time. The fortieth anniversary of the October Revolution and the conference of communist and workers’ parties from twelve and sixty-four countries respectively marked further progress in our understanding—not only of one another, but also among those twelve nations themselves.

Our understanding of you has evolved through a process, just as your understanding of us has likewise developed step by step.

When examining any issue, we must look at its essence and its main trend. Marxism teaches us to discern the fundamental nature of a matter and to assess its line: whether it pursues socialism domestically, opposes imperialism internationally, and upholds internationalism within the socialist camp. These three criteria together define a political line.

The Communist Party of China is likewise an anti-imperialist, socialist, and internationalist party, as are all other socialist states. Such characteristics embody the essential tenets of the Marxist line; they are concrete manifestations of it. Opposing imperialism, for example, is one such manifestation. We can compare their degree of resolve. Take Tito, for instance: in my view, he falls short on all three counts. As for anti-imperialism, he hardly engages in it at all, consistently speaking favorably of imperialism.