Liu Jun: Adhere to a Correct Outlook on the History of World War II and Firmly Defend Historical Justice
At this moment of profound historical significance—the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Soviet Union's Great Patriotic War, and the World Anti-Fascist War—President Xi Jinping conducted a state visit to Russia and attended the celebrations commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Great Patriotic War. This was a historic visit that looked back at history while focusing on the future, inheriting friendship while defending justice. This visit was not only a solemn commemoration of the great victory achieved by China and Russia fighting side by side, but also a call to work with all nations to adhere to the correct outlook on WWII history [1] and jointly defend the post-war international order.
In a signed article published in Rossiyskaya Gazeta titled "Taking History as a Mirror to Jointly Create the Future," President Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must take history as a mirror, drawing wisdom and strength from the profound lessons of the Second World War and the great victory of the Anti-Fascist War. We must resolutely oppose all forms of hegemonism and power politics, and together create a better future for humanity." Ensuring that the achievements of the WWII victory remain inviolable, adhering to the correct outlook on WWII history, and maintaining the post-war international order are essential components of defending historical justice. Especially in the current context where various ideological trends emerge to deny the achievements of WWII and distort the truth of its history, defending historical justice with the correct outlook on WWII history carries significant practical importance and far-reaching historical meaning.
Defending Historical Justice Requires Ensuring the Achievements of the WWII Victory Remain Inviolable
Justice is humanity's eternal pursuit of a rational social order. Western thinkers since Ancient Greece and Chinese thinkers since the pre-Qin period [2] have all treated justice as a major theme of study. Marxism critically developed the ideas of justice from previous thinkers and established the historical materialist conception of justice. Taking real people and their material production activities as the starting point, it constructed a practical dimension of justice theory. In the Marxist view of historical justice, history is the solid foundation of justice, and historical justice originates from a history that is just.
President Xi Jinping pointed out: "History tells us that light will surely dispel darkness, and justice will eventually prevail over evil." The power of justice is invincible. The core of historical justice consists of correct historical facts and historical narratives; defending historical justice primary requires ensuring that historical facts and narratives are not distorted. The Second World War was an unprecedented catastrophe in human history. To defend historical justice, one must first ensure that the achievements of the WWII victory are not violated. For China and the Soviet Union, the achievements of the WWII victory mainly include: First, the defeat of the aggression of Japanese militarism and German fascism, defending national independence and sovereignty. Taiwan and the Penghu Islands, which had been forcibly occupied by Japan, were returned to China. Second, playing a key role in the founding of the United Nations, constructing a new post-war international order, and pushing humanity into a New Era of general peace. China and the Soviet Union were among the first to sign the Charter of the United Nations, securing their historical status as permanent members of the UN Security Council. Third, actively supporting national liberation movements, catalyzing the collapse of the post-war colonial system, and transforming the global political landscape.
The smoke of history eventually dissipates, but historical memory does not fade. The Chinese and Soviet peoples suffered immense tribulations brought by foreign aggression and underwent an exceptionally harsh baptism of war. They waged a tenacious struggle side by side, gave each other selfless assistance, made enormous sacrifices, and achieved a great victory, establishing great historical merit for defending human dignity and rebuilding world peace.
History will not forget that in the World Anti-Fascist War—a just war concerning the fate of humanity—the peoples of China and the Soviet Union supported each other, were connected by blood, and forged a deep combat friendship. During the difficult moments of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Soviet Volunteer Air Force "struck the sky like eagles" [3] in Nanjing, Wuhan, and Chongqing to intercept the Japanese invaders. Between 1937 and 1941, more than 2,000 Soviet pilots participated in the volunteer air corps, and over 200 heroically sacrificed their lives in China. At the most critical juncture of the Soviet Great Patriotic War, the "Oriental Sorge"—the outstanding underground worker of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Yan Baohang—provided the Soviet side with first-hand intelligence. The Soviet Union provided China with large quantities of weapons and equipment, while China supplied the Soviet Union with urgently needed strategic materials; both countries played a vital role in supporting each other's anti-fascist wars.
President Xi Jinping pointed out: "The memory and truth of history do not fade with the passage of time; the enlightenment they bring us forever illuminates reality and heralds the future." Defending historical justice means acknowledging the achievements of the WWII victory and cherishing collective historical memory. The achievement of the WWII victory is a weight of history and a great memory. It is not only the shared historical memory of the Chinese and Russian peoples but also the shared historical memory of all peace-loving people worldwide who contributed to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. For 80 years, this historical memory has not been forgotten with the passage of time; rather, it has been integrated into our spirit and blood, transformed into dignity and value, and has become a precious spiritual wealth common to all humanity.
Defending Historical Justice Requires Adhering to the Correct Outlook on WWII History
President Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must adhere to the correct outlook on WWII history." The Marxist view of historical justice holds that a just history is guided by a correct historical view; without a correct historical view, there is no just history, and thus no historical justice. An outlook on WWII history is inextricably linked to the achievements of the WWII victory. The correct outlook on WWII history is the manifestation of historical cognition and memory at the level of spirit and values, based on respecting the achievements of the WWII victory. Defending historical justice requires adhering to this correct outlook. This outlook primarily includes: First, that China and the Soviet Union played the role of the "mainstay" [4] in the Asian and European main theaters respectively, making decisive contributions to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. Second, that the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression started earliest, lasted longest, faced the harshest conditions, and suffered the greatest sacrifices; it was a critical component of the World Anti-Fascist War. Third, that the CPC was the first to hold high the banner of armed resistance against Japan. Under the strong leadership of the CPC, the Chinese people fought heroically and achieved the great victory of the War of Resistance. Fourth, that the Nuremberg International Military Tribunal and the International Military Tribunal for the Far East nailed the war criminals to the "pillar of historical shame" forever; the just nature, historical value, and contemporary significance of these two great trials are unshakable.
The victory of WWII was a great victory for the forces of human justice, a symbol of justice over evil and light over darkness, bringing the dawn of peace and development to the world. To view WWII history correctly, one must adhere to the correct outlook on WWII history and firmly defend historical justice. This shared memory of the WWII victory is not only a vivid depiction of China and the Soviet Union fighting side by side against Japanese militarism and German fascism but also a precious historical legacy of the entire international community's sacrifice for peace. It deserves the common care and respect of all humanity. The famous Russian historian Klyuchevsky said: "If we lose the memory of history, our souls will be lost in the darkness." Adhering to the correct outlook on WWII history and guarding this shared memory is of great historical significance. Regrettably, today, 80 years after the victory, a few people still ignore the iron-clad historical facts and the tens of millions of innocent lives lost. They act against the tide of history, repeatedly denying or even glorifying the history of aggression, drawing strong condemnation from peace-loving people worldwide, including the Chinese people.
Defending historical justice mandates recognizing that China and the Soviet Union, as the main Asian and European theaters of WWII, were the mainstays in resisting Japanese militarism and German Nazism, making decisive contributions to the victory. Looking at the Asian theater, for ten years after 1931, the Chinese people resisted Japanese invaders alone, supporting the Asian main theater of the World Anti-Fascist War. During the War of Resistance, the sons and daughters of China followed one after another [5] and acted with one heart and mind [6], making the immense sacrifice of over 35 million military and civilian casualties. This effectively coordinated with Allied operations in other theaters and provided crucial support for the Soviet Union to avoid a two-front war. In this process, the leadership of the CPC and the Anti-Japanese National United Front [7] advocated and established by the CPC played a key role. After the "September 18th Incident," the CPC was the first to hold high the banner of armed resistance, advocated for the United Front, and ultimately led the Chinese nation to thoroughly defeat the Japanese militarists.
All people with conscience and a sense of justice have a responsibility to adhere to the correct outlook on WWII history regarding the immense contributions of China and the Soviet Union. On the 80th anniversary of the victory, leaders from over 20 countries and international organizations attended the celebrations for the Soviet Union's Great Patriotic War based on this philosophy. At this significant moment, people expressed high respect for the martyrs who fought bloody battles by watching the grand military parade and laying flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Based on this shared memory, China and Russia, through their respective commemorative celebrations, will forever remember the just feats of their peoples in maintaining world peace, honor the tens of millions of martyrs and innocent civilians who sacrificed their lives for the freedom and independence of future generations, and pay high tribute to the veterans and heroic home-front workers.
However, some Western countries use historical nihilism [8], double standards, and discourse reconstruction to manipulate ideology and public opinion. They deliberately downplay, distort, or even falsify the historical contributions of China and the Soviet Union in WWII, attempting to shake the just foundation of the post-war international order by misinterpreting historical narratives to prolong their global hegemony. In this context, the heads of state of China and Russia once again emphasized the joint promotion of the correct outlook on WWII history. This is not only a strong condemnation of historical revisionism and the act of falsifying history but also demonstrates a firm determination to defend international fairness and historical justice. During President Xi’s visit to Russia, the two heads of state signed and issued the Joint Statement between the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation on Further Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of Coordination for the New Era on the Occasion of the 80th Anniversary of the Victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Soviet Great Patriotic War, and the Founding of the United Nations (hereafter the Joint Statement). This statement not only reiterates the firm safeguarding of the international system with the UN at its core and the basic norms of international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, but also elevates adherence to the correct outlook on WWII history to a strategic content of bilateral institutionalized cooperation. Specific measures cover various aspects: holding educational and commemorative activities in various forms; further excavating and researching evidence and historical materials of the crimes of Nazi Germany and Japanese militarism; jointly holding commemorations at sites that changed the course of WWII history; and cooperating in searching for the remains of martyrs and missing persons.
President Xi Jinping emphasized: "All attempts to distort the truth of WWII history, deny the achievements of the WWII victory, and smear the historical merits of China and the Soviet Union will never succeed!" History cannot be desecrated, truth cannot be distorted, and memory cannot be erased. History is history, and facts are facts; no one can change history or facts. The Chinese people, who made immense sacrifices, will unswervingly defend the history written with blood and lives. Anyone who wants to deny, distort, or even glorify the history of aggression—the Chinese people and people of all nations will never allow it!
Defending Historical Justice Requires Firmly Maintaining UN Authority and International Fairness and Justice
President Xi Jinping pointed out: "The more the international situation is intertwined with change and disorder, the more we must adhere to and maintain the authority of the United Nations, firmly safeguard the international system with the UN at its core, the international order based on international law, and the basic norms of international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and continuously promote equal and orderly world multipolarity and universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization." The founding of the UN and the return of Taiwan to China are both achievements of the WWII victory and important parts of the post-war international order. Defending historical justice requires taking a clear stand against any attempt to tamper with history, safeguarding UN authority and international fairness and justice, and confirming China's sovereignty over Taiwan; these historical and legal facts are beyond doubt.
The post-war international order is a symbol of international fairness and justice. The victory of WWII was the result of the World Anti-Fascist Alliance transcending ideological and self-interest differences to resist aggression together. Currently, to seek their own hegemony and private interests, some countries plot to tamper with the achievements of the WWII victory and attempt to subvert the principles of the post-war international order. This behavior is a disregard for the lessons of history and a challenge to international fairness and justice. The world wants justice, not hegemony. The experiences and lessons of WWII clearly reveal that only by realizing international fairness and justice can the foundation of world peace be solidified. Although the war is long gone, the lessons and the great spirit of WWII should not be forgotten, and the principles of international fairness and justice should not be abandoned.
History not only carries the memory of the past but also serves as the foundation for value identity in contemporary international relations and the spiritual pillar of a fair and just international order. The achievements of the WWII victory are condensed into the cornerstone of multilateralism with the UN at its core, constructing the basic norms of modern international relations. In today's complex and volatile international situation, adhering to the correct outlook on WWII history and drawing historical wisdom and strength from it is of extremely important significance for maintaining world peace and upholding international fairness and justice.
Both China and Russia are major powers with significant influence and are constructive forces for maintaining global strategic stability and improving global governance. Based on historical responsibility and the mission of the times, the Joint Statement emphasized: "China and Russia will stand firmly on the side of international justice and are willing to work with peace-loving people around the world to resolutely safeguard the post-war international order and jointly build a beautiful future for humanity." We firmly believe that people of all countries will also choose to stand on the right side of history and the side of fairness and justice, joining hands to strive for a brighter future for humanity.
(The author is a professor at the School of Politics and International Relations, East China Normal University) (Articles on this page are commissioned by the Global Times and edited by the Theory Department of the People's Daily)