(1) On the Question of Not Attending the 23rd Congress of the CPSU
We will not attend the 23rd Congress of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union is holding this congress under conditions of internal and external difficulties. We rely on self-reliance, not on it, and we will not be entangled. To expect others not to waver, we must first not waver ourselves. By not attending, the leftists stand firmer, and the centrists draw closer to us. Not attending the 23rd Congress simply means the enemy is at the gates; if we do not fight, it is merely a war of words. We can write a letter if we do not attend. We have spoken of renegades and scabs. It is good that the Soviet Union opposes China—once they oppose us, we have material to work with. Renegades and scabs will always oppose China. Our banner must be clear; we must not be entangled. Castro [2] is nothing but a jackal blocking the way.
Someone asks: This time we did not attend; in the future, when the revisionists hold meetings, should we still send messages?

[1]
This is a speech by Mao Zedong at an enlarged meeting of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee held in Hangzhou.

[2]
Fidel Castro, Cuban leader, was born on August 13, 1926, in Birán, Oriente Province, Cuba. He graduated from the University of Havana in 1950 with a doctorate in law. On July 26, 1953, Castro led an armed uprising against the Batista dictatorship. After its failure, he was arrested and delivered his world-famous courtroom defense, "History Will Absolve Me." In 1955, he went into exile in the United States and Mexico, where he planned the "26th of July Movement." Castro returned to Cuba in 1956 and established a rebel army and base in the Sierra Maestra mountains. In January 1959, he led the rebel army to overthrow the Batista dictatorship, established a revolutionary government, and served as prime minister (later renamed president of the Council of Ministers) and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. From 1962, Castro served as first secretary of the Unified Party of the Cuban Socialist Revolution. After the party was renamed the Communist Party of Cuba in 1965, he served as first secretary of its Central Committee.