This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. Looking back on those arduous years, China—as the main Eastern battlefield of World War II (WWII)—has made decisive contributions to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War.

Today, facing increasingly complex geopolitical conflicts and global challenges, China remains an important force for defending post-war international order. To this end, it proposed the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity, providing a clear, incisive answer to the important question of “what kind of world to build and how to build it.”

Whole-of-Nation Resistance: How China’s Endurance Rewrote WWII Chronology

During the World Anti-Fascist War, China was the first country to launch resistance in the East and, more importantly, stood as a pillar in the main Eastern theater.

On 18 September 1931, the Japanese aggressors invaded northeast China on a pretext of their invention. The Chinese people rose up in resistance. That was the prologue to the World Anti-Fascist War. From Japan’s deliberate provocation of the September 18 Incident in 1931 to its surrender in 1945, the Chinese people had endured the blood and fire of battlefields for 14 years.

During the darkest days of the War of Resistance, China tied down nearly 70 percent of the Japanese Army, and thus helped Allied forces in other theaters gain vital strategic opportunities. Statistics reveal staggering persistence: 22 major campaigns, 200 pivotal engagements, nearly 200,000 battles and sustained over 35 million military and civilians casualties.

China consistently pinned down and combated the main forces of Japanese militarism in its battlefield, providing crucial strategic support to Allied operations, coordinating with operations in Europe and elsewhere in Asia. It disrupted attempts at strategic coordination among Japanese and other fascist forces. Had China failed, the Japanese aggressors might have pivoted to the Soviet Union or India earlier, and the global landscape could have been completely changed.

Taiwan’s Restoration: An Integral Part of the Postwar International Order

In the late 19th century, Japan forcibly seized Taiwan through war of aggression. For 50 years, the Taiwanese people never ceased resisting Japanese occupation. The victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression put Taiwan back under China’s sovereign jurisdiction. Taiwan’s return to China was an integral part of the fruits of the victory of WWII and the postwar international order.

The facts on the Taiwan question are crystal-clear. A series of instruments with legal effect under international law, including the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation issued by major victorious nations of World War II, have all affirmed China’s sovereignty over Taiwan.

The founding of the United Nations (U.N.) stood as the most crucial postwar decision of the international community. As a victorious nation, China was among the first to sign the U.N. Charter. The Resolution 2758, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in 1971, unequivocally recognizes the People’s Republic of China’s sovereignty over Taiwan. All these have confirmed China’s sovereignty over Taiwan, and formed an important part of the post-war international order.

Today, 183 countries—representing the overwhelming majority of U.N. member states—have established diplomatic ties with China based on the one-China principle as the political foundation. This reflects that the one-China principle is the global consensus and prevailing trend of our times. Taiwan will inevitably return to the embrace of its motherland.

Pillar of Justice: Translating Sacrifice into a Vision for Lasting Peace

The sufferings and triumphs of WWII form both the bedrock of humanity’s collective memory and a beacon guiding lasting peace. China has made its contribution as a defender of the international order and China’s development strengthens the force for global peace.

At the San Francisco Conference held in 1945, Chinese delegates championed national self-determination and anti-colonialism, playing a key role in advocating for the sovereign equality of all nations enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. China’s persistent advocacy for justice and ceasefire stems from its hard-won understanding of the fragility of peace and the dignity as a nation.

The Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, first proposed by China in the 1950s, has become a basic norm universally recognized by the international community. Contributing more peacekeepers than any other permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, China is acclaimed as a key factor and a vital force in peacekeeping efforts.

China stands ready to play a greater role in promoting peace and security in Africa. The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has grown rapidly in the 25 years since its establishment, leading China-Africa relations to achieve leapfrog development and enter the best period in history. China will vigorously advance peace and security cooperation within the FOCAC framework and establish partnerships with African countries.

For a Brighter Tomorrow: Building a Community with a Shared Future for Humanity

War is like a mirror. Looking at it helps us better appreciate the value of peace. Although Mauritius was not the main battlefields of WWII, the conflict still brought significant hardship to the country. During the war, the Mauritian people demonstrated remarkable resilience in supporting the Anti-Fascist effort and emerging from the conflict with a strengthened sense of unity and determination.

History throws lights on the present and provides inspiration for the future. China designated 3 September as Victory Day to mark the signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on 2 September, 1945. Next month, on the morning of 3 September, Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend and deliver a speech at a gathering in Tian’anmen Square in central Beijing, which will include a military parade. Medals marking the 80th anniversary of the victory against Japanese aggression will be awarded to war veterans and family members of the deceased.

As changes unseen in a century unfold in the world, developing countries as a whole are enhancing competitive advantage. A multipolar world needs to be equal and orderly, economic globalization should be universally beneficial and inclusive, and true multilateralism must be safeguarded.

Standing at a new crossroads, China has proposed the building of a community with a shared future for humanity because it firmly believes that humanity needs not the law of the jungle, but a shared future; not bullying and hegemony, but win-win cooperation; not overturning the postwar international order, but safeguarding the fruits of the victory of World Anti-Fascist War. Only in this way can we prevent the tragic history from repeating itself, consolidate the foundation of peace and development, and realize the vision of a brighter future.