Ji Chunfang: "On Protracted War": A Strategic Beacon Illuminating Victory in the War of Resistance

As a brilliant model for the Sinicized development of Marxist military theory, On Protracted War, written by Mao Zedong in 1938, profoundly influenced the historical course of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression with its far-reaching scientific foresight and practical operational guidance. This work not only provided solid theoretical support and strategic direction for the victory of China's resistance against Japan but also continues to inspire the Chinese people to work with one heart and mind and forge ahead on the path toward achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Dispelling Intellectual Mists to Point the Way for the War of Resistance

Refuting erroneous arguments and establishing the conviction of eventual victory. In the early stages of the full-scale War of Resistance, two extreme and harmful ideologies permeated the country: the "theory of national subjugation," which produced a tendency toward compromise, and the "theory of quick victory," which produced a tendency to underestimate the enemy. At this critical moment of intellectual confusion, Mao Zedong's On Protracted War resonated like a clap of thunder. Guided by dialectical materialism and historical materialism, he profoundly analyzed the specific conditions of Japan's invasion of China and scientifically pointed out the developmental direction of China’s resistance. He noted that although Japan was a strong power with robust military, economic, and organizational capabilities, the war it launched was aggressive and retrogressive—a case of "an unjust cause finds little support" ^[1]. Furthermore, Japan was a small country with a small population and scarce resources, making it unable to withstand the attrition of a long-term war. Conversely, while China was a weak nation with relatively backward military equipment and economic strength, it was conducting a just war against aggression—a case of "a just cause finds much support." Moreover, China possessed a vast territory, abundant resources, and a large population, providing deep potential to sustain a protracted war. Based on this, Mao Zedong concluded: "The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression is a protracted war," and "the final victory will belong to China." This judgment dispelled the gloom of the "theory of national subjugation" and the illusions of the "theory of quick victory," allowing people to see the dawn of victory and firming their conviction that the war must be won.

Dialectically analyzing contradictions and forecasting the stages of war. Based on a deep insight into the laws governing the movement of contradictions between China and Japan, Mao Zedong creatively divided the War of Resistance into three stages: strategic defense, strategic stalemate, and strategic counter-offensive. In the strategic defense stage, Japan relied on its military superiority in an attempt to quickly destroy China. Due to the disparity in strength, large areas of Chinese territory fell. However, the tenacious resistance and heroic struggle of the Chinese people accumulated strength and bought time for the subsequent resistance. In the strategic stalemate stage, the Japanese army's offensive momentum gradually weakened due to overextended battle lines, dispersed troops, and supply difficulties. During this time, China, through its earlier resistance and strategic layout, further consolidated the Anti-Japanese National United Front, while guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines flourished. In the strategic counter-offensive stage, the strength of the Chinese military would gradually increase, while the Japanese army would become increasingly exhausted, dispersed, and demoralized. Ultimately, China would thoroughly defeat the Japanese military and achieve total victory. The development of history fully verified this scientific foresight; the division into these three stages not only provided a clear strategic blueprint for the war but also offered an essential basis for military decision-making.

Scientifically Analyzing the Situation to Reveal the Laws of the War of Resistance

Grasping the nature of the war and establishing strategic principles. Mao Zedong pointed out in On Protracted War that Japan vainly attempted to invade China through war to realize its political ambition of monopolizing China and dominating East Asia. Such aggressive conduct seriously violated international justice and human conscience. As an unjust war, it drew condemnation and opposition from the international community and triggered anti-war sentiment and internal contradictions within Japan, which would greatly weaken Japan's war-making capacity and will. In contrast, China’s resistance was conducted to defend national sovereignty, ethnic dignity, and the people's right to exist; it was a just war against aggression. Peace-loving and justice-upholding countries and peoples in the international community would inevitably sympathize with and aid China’s resistance. At the same time, Mao Zedong situated the War of Resistance within the overall global perspective of the World Anti-Fascist War, clearly stating that China’s resistance was an integral part of that global struggle. The protracted resistance on the Chinese battlefield not only pinned down a large number of Japanese troops but also had a significant impact on the final victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. This precise and comprehensive grasp of the war's nature laid a solid foundation for establishing correct strategic principles.

Innovating the tactical system to resolve the disparity between the strong enemy and the weak self. Facing Japan's superiority in military equipment, technology, training, quality, and mobilization, Mao Zedong proposed a set of highly innovative tactical principles: "offensive within the defensive, quick-decision within protractedness, and exterior-line operations within interior-line operations." "Offensive within the defensive" required that during the strategic defense stage, the Chinese military could not passively engage in pure defense but had to proactively seek out enemy weaknesses and launch local offensives at opportune moments. "Quick-decision within protractedness" meant that within the framework of a strategic protracted war, the focus should be on quick-decision operations at the campaign and tactical levels. By concentrating superior forces to form a local advantage, the military could launch sudden attacks on isolated or dispersed Japanese units to conclude battles quickly, avoiding long wars of attrition and thereby minimizing losses while effectively destroying the enemy's living forces. "Exterior-line operations within interior-line operations" meant that while the overall war placed China in the position of interior-line operations ^[2], on the level of specific campaigns and battles, the Chinese military could use flexible strategy and tactics to form a posture of local exterior-line operations, thereby breaking enemy encirclement and blockades to seize the initiative.

Guiding the Practice of Resistance to Drive the Transformation of the War Situation

Leading military practice and reshaping the battlefield landscape. On Protracted War provided comprehensive and meticulous guidance for the military practice of China’s resistance, becoming a key theoretical pillar for reshaping the battlefield. Strategically, it emphasized "trading space for time." China’s vast territory provided strategic depth; the Chinese military could fully utilize this advantage through proactive strategic retreats and tenacious resistance to delay the Japanese advance, exhaust their strength, and win time to mobilize the entire population and accumulate strength for a strategic counter-offensive. Furthermore, the work broke the traditional military theoretical view of guerrilla warfare as merely auxiliary, pointing out its vital strategic status in the War of Resistance. It emphasized mobilizing the masses to carry out guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines and establishing anti-Japanese base areas. This not only effectively pinned down large numbers of Japanese troops but also "turned the enemy's rear into their front line," forming a strategic pattern of coordination with the frontal battlefields. This greatly altered the battlefield situation and created the conditions for a strategic counter-offensive.

Strengthening political mobilization to aggregate the synergy of resistance. In On Protracted War, Mao Zedong viewed political mobilization as the core strategy for aggregating the synergy of national resistance. By systematically discussing the political essence, mobilization strategies, and organizational methods of the war, he constructed the theoretical framework that "the army and the people are the foundation of victory." This not only directly guided the practice of the war but also profoundly influenced the historical process of the Communist Party of China (CPC) mobilizing the masses and integrating forces. In Mao’s view, "such a great national revolutionary war cannot be won without universal and deep political mobilization." Under the guidance of this thought, the CPC actively advocated for and promoted the formation and development of the Anti-Japanese National United Front. Through broad and deep propaganda and mobilization, the patriotic enthusiasm of the masses was ignited, causing people of all ethnic groups, regardless of region, class, or profession, to actively throw themselves into the torrent of the War of Resistance. The formation of a whole-nation resistance greatly enhanced China’s strength, drowning the Japanese invaders in the vast ocean of a people’s war characterized by the unity and shared will of the Chinese nation.

Consolidating the National Spirit to Inspire Future Generations

Forging the spirit of resistance and anchoring the foundation of faith. During the darkest hours following the fall of Nanjing and the crisis in North China, and in the face of the ideological cleavage between the "theory of national subjugation" and the "theory of quick victory," Mao Zedong used On Protracted War to scientifically analyze the laws of war and national character. He profoundly expounded the relationship between the War of Resistance and the fate of the Chinese nation and placed China's struggle within the global anti-fascist context. This grand narrative, which transcended mere nationalism, sublimated the spirit of resistance into a universal faith in the pursuit of human justice. Inspired by On Protracted War, countless sons and daughters of China—carrying deep-seated hatred for the invaders and a firm conviction in victory—shared a common enemy and followed one after another, building a Great Wall of steel with their own flesh and blood to resist foreign aggression. Mao Zedong also detailed the developmental trajectory and bright prospects of the resistance, leading people to firmly believe that as long as they persisted in a protracted war and fully mobilized and relied on the masses, they would surely drive the Japanese invaders out of China. This firm faith in victory became a powerful spiritual driver supporting the entire Chinese nation in its unyielding and continuous struggle through the difficult and bitter years of the War of Resistance.

(The author is an assistant researcher at the Institute of Contemporary China Studies, CASS)