Some Points in Appraisal of the Present International Situation

Mao Zedong wrote a document in Yan'an in April 1946 in response about pessimistic estimation of the international situation at that time. This document was not made public at the time and was circulated only among some leading comrades of the Central Committee. It was distributed at the meeting of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in December 1947. Since the comrades present unanimously agreed with its contents, the full text was later included in "A Circular on the Decisions Made at the Central Committee Meeting of December 1947", issued by the Central Committee in January 1948. It was included in the Selected Works of Mao Zedong, Volume 4.

On September 2, 1945, Japanese imperialism formally signed the surrender letter, marking the final victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. After the war, profound changes have taken place in the international situation. The fascist countries of Germany, Italy and Japan were defeated, and the old capitalist countries such as Britain and France were severely weakened. Only the national strength of the United States was strengthened and became the world’s number one power.

The United States was seeking hegemony in the world, not only in vain to put the whole capitalist country under its control, but also to attack and destroy socialist countries. With its strong economic and military strength, it has carried out "aid" programs all over the world and established military bases to destroy and suppress the revolutionary and democratic movements of the people of all countries.

In the spring of 1946, imperialism headed by the United States of America, together with the reactionaries in various countries, was daily intensifying its anti-Soviet, anti-Communist and anti-popular activities and trumpeting that “war between the United States and the Soviet Union is inevitable” and that “the outbreak of a Third World war is inevitable.”

In these circumstances, since some comrades overestimated the strength of imperialism, underestimated the strength of the people, feared U.S. imperialism and feared the outbreak of a new world war, they showed weakness in the face of the armed attacks of the U.S.-Chiang Kai-shek reactionary gang and dared not resolutely oppose counter-revolutionary war with revolutionary war.

In response to this pessimistic assessment of the international and domestic situation, Mao Zedong wrote the document.

(1) About whether a new world war can happen. Mao Zedong believed that the danger of a new world war existed. He pointed out that if the forces of the people throughout the world waged resolute, effective struggles against the forces of world reaction, they could overcome the danger of a new world war.

Based on this, Mao Zedong judged that "the question in the relations between the United States, Britain and France and the Soviet Union is not a question of compromise or break, but a question of compromise earlier or compromise later". "Compromise" means reaching agreement through peaceful negotiation. "Earlier or later" means several years, or more than ten years, or even longer.

(2) The kind of compromise mentioned above does not mean compromise on all international issues.

This kind of compromise means compromise on some issues, including certain important ones. But there will not be many such compromises in the near future. There is, however, a possibility that the trade relations of the United States, Britain and France with the Soviet Union will expand. This shows that the danger of war still exists.

(3) Such compromise between the United States, Britain and France and the Soviet Union can be the outcome only of resolute, “effective struggles by all the democratic forces of the world against the reactionary forces of the United States, Britain and France.”

Such compromise does not require the people in the countries of the capitalist world to follow suit and make compromises at home. Because "the principle of the reactionary forces in dealing with the democratic forces of the people is definitely to destroy all they can and to prepare to destroy later whatever they cannot destroy now. Face to face with this situation, the democratic forces of the people should likewise apply the same principle to the reactionary forces." Mao Zedong called that under the above-mentioned international situation, "the people in those countries will continue to wage different struggles in accordance with their different conditions."