Mao Zedong (hereafter referred to as Mao): I want to ask you a question. Do you have this feeling: What on earth will imperialism do? That is to say, will it fight a world war or not? Or will it hold off for now and fight later? From your contacts with your own country and European countries, do you have this feeling?

Hill (hereafter referred to as Hill): I think they haven't made up their minds yet. They are facing enormous difficulties right now. It seems they won't fight for the time being; at least, they don't yet have the strength to launch a war on a world scale. Most people hold this view. On the other hand, because they have lost the ability to judge, there is a danger of major conflicts breaking out. But on the whole, they are still unable to start this great war for now.

Mao: If war is to be fought, the two big countries, the United States and the Soviet Union, can fight. Next are Japan, West Germany, and Italy—these defeated nations. As for Britain and France, they are not very keen on fighting.

Zhou Enlai (hereafter referred to as Zhou): De Gaulle¹ has even cut his military budget a little.

Mao: Even Japan and West Germany don't seem to want war at present. West Germany wants to annex East Germany and unify Germany. Japan wants to recover Okinawa. Actually, Japan is not yet independent.

[1] Sections one to three of this text are part of Mao Zedong's conversation with Hill, Chairman of the Communist Party of Australia, during their meeting.
[2] De Gaulle was then President of France.