Mao Zedong (hereafter Mao): China is similar to your African countries—imperialists all over the world oppress us. Now, the Soviet Union, we also call it imperialist, because it oppresses us too.
Zhou Enlai (hereafter Zhou): We call it social-imperialist, because Lenin said that, cloaked in the guise of socialism, it is in fact imperialism.
Mao: We hope that all your African countries and regions will become independent, one by one. Second, unite, gradually—rushing won’t work—and gradually achieve unification. The same goes for Latin America, Asia—all countries except Japan—we hold the same hope. Why is Japan excluded? It does not belong to the so-called Third World.
Mao: I don’t know whether our embassies in African countries have made mistakes, nor do I know what neocolonialism is. If Chinese people in your countries, in all independent African countries, act like overlords, throwing their weight around and thinking they are something special, then that attitude is wrong. The second question, what neocolonialism is, I’m not very clear about.
Zhou: It’s like U.S. imperialism—having no colonies but possessing privileges. In fact, the Soviet Union is the same, that is, not directly ruling in the manner of old-style colonialism.
Because if a communist party does not support the world people’s revolution, can it still be called a communist party? I say, you (referring to Ngouabi) must also adopt this attitude, that is, to stand on the side of the people of all countries.
This is part of a conversation between Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and President Ngouabi of the People’s Republic of the Congo.

Conversation with Ngouabi
Ngouabi (hereafter Ngouabi): That is so.
Mao: In short, one should side with the government that represents the majority. If one sides with those who represent the minority, that would not be quite proper.
Sometimes in foreign policy, one has no choice but to engage. For example, U.S. imperialism—they are a minority ruling over the majority, so they are called imperialist. But we deal with them, because right now, the leftists are good as they are, but they have no power; the centrists also have no power. It is this rightist, the most fiercely anti-communist, Nixon, who has power.
Mao: In this world today, do not believe that it is peaceful and free of trouble.
Zhou: Great chaos under heaven—Chairman Mao often says it is great chaos.
Mao: The current situation is “the wind sweeping through the tower heralds a rising storm in the mountains.” But this mountain storm is coming, yet it has not yet arrived. However, the wind has come, and the wind is very fierce! I wonder how you Africans feel about it?
Ngouabi: We must remain vigilant, because now there is superficial peace, but in reality it is not so. Everyone talks about “security,” but this is only a surface phenomenon, so we hold a skeptical attitude toward world peace.
Mao: We fundamentally do not believe in any so-called “peace” or “security.”