Vietnam to honour China and other traditional friends on 80th national day

Vietnam’s National Defence Ministry has invited the military of five countries – Russia China, Laos, Cambodia, and Belarus – to join the parade in the ceremony marking the 80th August Revolution Day and the 80th National Day, to be held on September 2 in the capital Hanoi.

The ministry has also sent invitations to defence ministers of eight countries – Russia, China, Laos, Cambodia, Cuba, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan – to attend the ceremony, according to Deputy Minister, Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien.

The Vietnam News Service reported on July 10 that the invitation of military units to participate in the parade is a gesture of friendship, solidarity and the close bonds between the people and army of Vietnam and their traditional allies and further noted that on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the liberation of the South and National Reunification (April 30 2025), the defence ministries of China, Laos and Cambodia sent military personnel to take part in the parade held in Ho Chi Minh City. This was the first time for Vietnam to invite foreign troops to participate in a national military parade.

Also on July 10, the defence ministry held a meeting with relevant bodies to expedite the construction of a monument dedicated to the soldiers from foreign countries who supported Vietnam during its resistance wars, to be located at the Vietnam Military History Museum.

The memorial complex will include a general symbol commemorating the support and sacrifices of foreign military experts, made of bronze and designed by Vietnam, as well as separate monuments honouring military experts from the Soviet Union/Russia, China, Laos, Cambodia and Cuba, also made of bronze, that will be either designed and constructed by the respective countries or by Vietnam upon request, and a greenstone relief designed and built by Vietnam.

The following article was originally published in Vietnam News.

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam’s National Defence Ministry has invited the military of five countries – Russia, China, Laos, Cambodia, and Belarus – to join the parade in the ceremony marking the 80th August Revolution Day and National Day on September 2 in Hà Nội.

The ministry has also sent invitations to defence ministers of eight countries of Russia, China, Laos, Cambodia, Cuba, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan to attend the ceremony, according to Deputy Minister, Senior Lieutenant General Hoàng Xuân Chiến.

So far, Cuba has responded to the invitation, confirming that the Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba will attend the ceremony.

Laos and Cambodia have also expressed their support for the initiative to send military forces to participate in the parade at the celebration, as per Việt Nam’s invitation.

The invitation of military units to participate in the parade is a gesture of friendship, solidarity and close bonds between the people and army of Việt Nam and its traditional allies.

The move also reaffirms Việt Nam’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralism — being a reliable partner and friend to all nations.

Previously, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification (April 2025), the defence ministries of China, Laos and Cambodia sent military personnel to take part in Việt Nam’s military parade.

On the same day, the defence ministry held a meeting with agencies and units to implement the construction of a monument dedicated to the soldiers from foreign countries who supported Việt Nam during its resistance wars, to be located at the Việt Nam Military History Museum.

This commemorative project carries great significance, paying tribute to foreign military experts and soldiers who assisted Việt Nam in its wars of national liberation.

The memorial complex will include a general symbol commemorating the support and sacrifices of foreign military experts, made of bronze and designed by Việt Nam; separate monuments honouring military experts from the Soviet Union/Russia, China, Laos, Cambodia and Cuba, also made of bronze that will be either designed and constructed by the respective countries or by Việt Nam upon request; and a greenstone relief designed and built by Việt Nam.

The area surrounding the monument will be landscaped with trees and grass lawns.

Chiến has instructed that construction progress be expedited. The first group of statues must be completed before August 15, while the entrance and central exhibition area should be finished by August 10.

China and DPRK mark treaty anniversary

The 64th anniversary of the signing of the China-DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance was celebrated in Pyongyang and Beijing on July 8th and 10th respectively.

The Xinhua News Agency reported that, addressing the reception held at his embassy, Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK Wang Yajun said that the treaty embodies the friendship the two peoples built with their blood in the process of resisting foreign aggression and striving for national independence and liberation and lays a solid legal and political foundation for the long-term development of bilateral relations.

He added that at the moment when changes in the global landscape unseen in a century are going deeper, highlighted by intertwined chaos and ever emerging risks and challenges, it is of great significance to well implement the spirit of the treaty and well develop bilateral ties.

In his address at the event, Kang Yun Sok, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly of the DPRK, said that the bilateral treaty lays a solid legal foundation for the continuous consolidation and development of the friendly and cooperative relations between the DPRK and China amid any changes and challenges.

The DPRK-China friendship was jointly forged by the two countries’ older generations of leadership in striving to fight imperialism, achieve independence and build socialism, he said, noting that it is the DPRK’s unwavering stance to pass on and deepen the friendship with China from generation to generation.

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) also carried a report on the reception.

China’s People’s Daily reported that Wang Dongming, Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), attended a reception on July 10 to commemorate the 64th anniversary of the signing of the treaty hosted by DPRK Ambassador to China Ri Yong Nam.

KCNA noted the large number of Chinese institutions who participated in the reception.

On July 11, People’s Daily carried a commentary saying that: “On July 11, 1961, Premier Zhou Enlai and Prime Minister Kim Il Sung jointly signed the Sino-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Beijing. This important document has laid a political and legal foundation for the development of friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries and embodies the common desire of the two sides to inherit and carry forward the traditional friendship and safeguard regional peace.

It added: “In recent years, General Secretary Xi Jinping and General Secretary Kim Jong Un have maintained close exchanges and interactions through various forms, leading and promoting the traditional friendly and cooperative relations between China and the DPRK into a new historical period. China and the DPRK have adhered to the original aspiration of friendship for generations, strengthened strategic communication, exchanges and cooperation, firmly supported each other, and safeguarded the common interests of the two countries, fully demonstrating the unbreakable and vigorous vitality of the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK.”

Under the leadership of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) headed by General Secretary Kim Jong Un, it continued, the DPRK people have actively implemented the spirit of the previous plenary sessions of the Central Committee of the WPK and comprehensively promoted all work of socialist construction. As a good comrade and good neighbour, the Chinese side sincerely wishes that the fraternal DPRK people will continue to make new and greater achievements in the cause of socialist construction.

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. During the arduous war years, the peoples of China and the DPRK supported each other, fought side by side, and made important contributions to the just cause of humanity. It is the firm stand of the Chinese party and government to maintain, consolidate and develop China-DPRK relations.

The following articles were originally published by the Xinhua News Agency and People’s Daily. The People’s Daily commentary was published in Chinese and has been machine translated.

Chinese embassy marks 64th anniversary of signing of China-DPRK friendship treaty

PYONGYANG, July 10 (Xinhua) — The Chinese Embassy in Pyongyang on Wednesday held a reception to commemorate the 64th anniversary of the signing of the China-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance.

Over 130 diplomats and officials from both sides attended the event.

Addressing the reception, Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK Wang Yajun said the bilateral treaty is a document of historical significance as well as a monument marking the friendship between China and the DPRK.

Continue reading China and DPRK mark treaty anniversary

Liberation movement ties recalled and carried forward

China’s diplomatic missions in South Africa and Tanzania have recently highlighted the historical legacy and continued relevance of the bonds of solidarity forged during the struggle for national liberation.

On 17 June, Pan Qingjiang, China’s Consul General in Johannesburg, published an article entitled “Driving Education Culture, Fostering Youth Friendship Between China and South Africa” in various major South African media outlets.

According to an article published by the South African Government News Agency: “In South Africa, Youth Month is celebrated every June following a declaration by our first democratic President, Tata Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. It is a time when we collectively honour the pivotal role that young people played in the struggle against Apartheid and the historic Soweto Uprising of 1976. Every 16 June, as we mark National Youth Day, we not only remember the sacrifices and courage of those young people, but we also renew our commitment to equipping today’s youth for a vibrant future.”

Pan writes: “On the occasion of South Africa’s Youth Month, I wish to extend my sincere festive greetings to all our young friends. The youth are the future of nations and the future of China-South Africa friendship as well… Our nations, the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa, enjoy traditional friendship characterised by a strong ‘comradeship plus brotherhood’ bond…. The shared history and common future between China and South Africa are the solid foundation and driving force for the friendship among our youths.

“In June last year, the Consulate General of China in Johannesburg organised a themed short video competition for secondary school learners, encouraging the youth to reflect on both South Africa’s 1976 Soweto Uprising and China’s May Fourth Movement. More than one hundred participants from over twenty schools in Gauteng and the Free State submitted their creative entries in a variety of creative forms, including drama, speech, song, and dance, which vividly portrayed the heroic struggles of both countries against colonial oppression.

“Together, we paid tribute to, learned, and gained strength from the shared legacy of Chinese and South African youth in their pursuit of freedom, justice, and progress.”

The 1976 Soweto Uprising, led by the township youth, spread like a prairie fire across South Africa. Its brutal repression led thousands of young people to leave home and join the ranks of the African National Congress (ANC) and the other liberation movements waging armed struggle against the apartheid regime. It is considered a key turning point in the fight for a free South Africa.

China’s May Fourth Movement, a student-led anti-imperialist uprising, was sparked by the capitulation of the Chinese government to the humiliating terms imposed by the imperialist powers meeting at the 1919 Versailles peace conference. Together with the influence of the October Revolution in Russia, it played a major role in preparing for the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) two years later. Key founders of the CPC, Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu were central leaders of the May Fourth Movement.

After detailing a number of current educational and cultural exchanges between South Africa and China, Pan’s article concludes:

“Like the rising sun, the youth brings brilliant prospects. China and South Africa are bound together by shared history, common developmental tasks and strategic interests. The youth serves as the vanguard in building a high-level China-South Africa community with a shared future and advancing our all-round strategic cooperative partnership in the new era.”

Earlier, on May 28, China’s Ambassador to Tanzania, Chen Mingjian visited the African Liberation Movement Freedom Fighters Kongwa Camp, together with officials from the Tanzanian government and the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (Revolutionary Party of Tanzania).

The two sides reflected on China’s contributions to Tanzania’s independence and the national liberation of southern Africa, and agreed to strengthen historical sites protection and inheritance, and to promote inter-party and sub-national cooperation between the two countries.

District Council Chairman White Zuberi, who witnessed the national liberation movement, showed Ambassador Chen around the camp and, together with her, recalled the glorious history of mutual support between China and Africa. The camp was built in 1964 and both Mozambique’s founding President Samora Machel and Namibia’s founding President Sam Nujoma were trained there.

The following articles were originally published on the websites of the Chinese Consulate General in Johannesburg and the Chinese Embassy in Tanzania. They are reproduced here from that of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

Chinese Consul General in Johannesburg Pan Qingjiang Publishes Signed Article Titled Driving Education Culture, Fostering Youth Friendship Between China and South Africa

June 17 (MFA) — On 17 June, Consul General Pan Qingjiang published a signed article entitled “Driving Education Culture,Fostering Youth Friendship Between China and South Africa” in the mainstream media of South Africa, including the Star, the Mercury, the Cape Times and the IOL website. Full text below:

On the occasion of South Africa’s Youth Month, I wish to extend my sincere festive greetings to all our young friends. The youth are the future of nations and the future of China-South Africa friendship as well. I have been deeply impressed by the confidence, optimism, and ingenuity of the young South African people.

Our nations, the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa, enjoy traditional friendship characterized by a strong “comradeship plus brotherhood” bond.

Continue reading Liberation movement ties recalled and carried forward

China and Vietnam jointly promote Red Tourism

The Vietnamese newspaper Nhân Dân recently reported that an exhibition on President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary career in China has been jointly organised by the Guangdong Museum of Revolutionary History of China and the Ho Chi Minh Museum of Viet Nam as part of the activities to celebrate the 75th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic relations and the Year of People-to-People Exchange between the two countries.

During his journey to seek a path for liberating the nation, the paper notes, President Ho Chi Minh spent many years in China, including an extremely important period in Guangzhou, Guangdong province from 1924-1927. During this time, he established the Vietnam Revolutionary Youth League, the predecessor of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), and organised training courses to prepare cadres and build the organisational structure, creating the ideal conditions for the founding of the party.

The exhibition retraces the late Vietnamese leader’s 12 years of revolutionary activities in China and emphasises that, under the leadership of President Ho Chi Minh, Chairman Mao Zedong, and other pioneering leaders, the people of Vietnam and China stood together, enduring hardships in their struggles for independence and national liberation. The friendship as comrades plus brothers between Vietnam and China remains a valuable legacy for both nations and will endure for future generations.

Historical sites, it continues, associated with the revolutionary career of President Ho Chi Minh in China are evidence of his revolutionary journey and serve as important landmarks of Vietnam-China friendship. The Chinese government attaches great importance to preserving these sites, having restored and protected them to enhance their historical value. Today, they serve as “red addresses” – destinations for revolutionary education and people-to-people exchanges, especially among younger generations. The exhibition is scheduled to be held on a rotating basis at several museums in both Vietnam and China.

In a separate article, Nhân Dân reports on the mutual ‘red tourism’ by young people from the two socialist neighbours.

It writes that during her first visit to Vietnam to attend the Vietnam-China Youth Friendship Meeting in April, Huang Chenshen from the China Youth University for Political Studies had listened to speeches by Chinese Party General Secretary Xi Jinping and Vietnamese Party General Secretary To Lam, visited Quang Ninh and Ninh Binh provinces, and explored the local culture. What impressed her most was experiencing the cultural life of Vietnam’s ethnic minorities.

The “Red Study Tour” programme of visits to China was proposed by Xi during his April visit to Vietnam. It links together historical sites associated with President Ho Chi Minh and former Chinese leaders, serving as a “living history classroom” that fosters a spirit of solidarity and a shared sense of responsibility among young people for peace and development.

Nguyen Thi Phuong Hoa, former Deputy Director of the Institute for Chinese Studies and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Chinese Studies Journal, said that the content of youth exchanges has become increasingly diverse, shifting from general forums to more practical, thematic discussions closely tied to the role of young people in national development and innovation.

The first tour visited China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in May, with the theme, “Following President Ho Chi Minh’s Footsteps”. In addition to visiting historical sites, Guangxi also organised activities for the young delegates to experience artificial intelligence technology and the digital environment. Vietnamese participants were able to visit a robotics lab, experience high-speed train travel, and explore advanced technological applications.

The following articles were originally published by Nhân Dân.

Exhibition spotlights President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary career in China

June 30 (Nhân Dân) — An exhibition on President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary career in China has been jointly held by the Guangdong Museum of Revolutionary History of China and the Ho Chi Minh Museum of Viet Nam as part of activities to celebrate the 75th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations and the Year of Humanistic Exchange 2025 between the two nations.

Continue reading China and Vietnam jointly promote Red Tourism

Algerian veterans recall Chinese support to liberation struggle

The Xinhua News Agency recently carried interviews with two veterans of the Algerian liberation struggle regarding the support and training they received from China.

The article states: “In the heat of the Algerian War of Independence in the 1950s, when colonial repression was at its peak and international support was scarce, a distant nation opened its arms to a group of determined young Algerians, training them as soldiers in their quest for national independence. And that nation was the newly founded People’s Republic of China.”

It notes that, after officially recognizing the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic in September 1958, China hosted 27 Algerian trainees for comprehensive aviation training between 1959 and 1961. More than six decades later, the memories of this experience, which exemplify the long-standing friendship between China and Algeria, remain vivid in the hearts of the veterans.

Retired Lieutenant Colonel Boudaoud Lounes and Colonel Drid Ahmed Lakhdar, two of the Algerian airmen who trained in China, shared their story of sacrifice, solidarity, and a bond that has endured across generations.

Lounes, a former bomber pilot, was among the very first Algerian airmen trained in China during the height of the War of Independence. “We first received basic training in Syria, at the Aleppo military school,” Lounes recalled. “But for our specialization, only one country answered our call: China.” Arriving in China: “We saw immediately the parallels between the Chinese people’s struggles and those of our own people. What touched us most wasn’t just the military knowledge. It was the way they believed in us. We were treated with respect, as equals. In China, we felt like brothers.”

Lakhdar joined the second batch of Algerian air trainees sent to China in 1959. He said: “The Chinese know what it means to be colonized. Their commitment came from their own experience.”

His words echo those of the African-American scholar and revolutionary Dr. WEB Du Bois, speaking in Beijing in 1959 on his 91st birthday:

“China is flesh of your flesh, and blood of your blood. China is colored and knows to what a colored skin in this modern world subjects its owner. But China knows more, much more than this: she knows what to do about it.”

More than 60 years later, Lakhdar recalls when the time came to leave China:

“When we completed our training and went to thank the Chinese Defense Ministry, they told us, ‘no, we must thank you. You opened a front in Africa and freed us from encirclement.’ I will never forget that moment, as it showed how our struggle was part of something bigger. The sense of duty, humility, and collective spirit I learned in China stayed with me for life. I tried to pass it on to younger generations.”

Continue reading Algerian veterans recall Chinese support to liberation struggle

Chinese scholar lauds Vietnam’s revolutionary press

A solemn ceremony was held in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi on June 21 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Press Day (June 21, 1925-2025).

Addressing the meeting, Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee, and Chairman of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Communications, Education and Mass Mobilisation  of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Trong Nghia said that the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Press Day is an opportunity to review and multiply the pride, respect, and infinite gratitude towards President Ho Chi Minh – the founder, leader, trainer and great teacher of the Vietnamese revolutionary press. It is an occasion to show the pride of and gratitude to outstanding and exemplary leaders, revolutionary soldiers, and senior journalists; remember generations of journalists who directly fought and heroically sacrificed during the resistance wars against the French colonialists and US imperialists; and to express gratitude for the contributions of generations of journalists and soldiers who have raised high the Party’s ideological flag.

Emphasising that the 100-year journey of the Vietnamese revolutionary press has marked the efforts, achievements, lessons, challenges, ups and downs, and aspirations to move forward, Nghia affirmed that over the past century, the Vietnamese revolutionary press has always been steadfast, loyal, and devoted to the noble revolutionary cause of the Party, the nation, and the people.

In an interview with the Vietnam News Agency to mark the occasion, Li Minghan, an intellectual from China’s Hong Kong who has devoted most of his life to studying President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary career, described “Thanh Nien” (Young People) newspaper, which laid the foundation for Vietnam’s revolutionary journalism a century ago, as a modest publication with great responsibility and mission.

Li said that President Ho Chi Minh, drawing from his experience in the French communist movement and his role in founding the Le Paria (The Pariah) newspaper in Paris in 1922 to expose colonial crimes and unite the global anti-colonial struggle, understood the power of revolutionary journalism as a tool to popularise, mobilise, organise, and lead revolutionary movements. During his stay in China’s Guangzhou city from 1924 to 1927 to prepare for the establishment of a Communist Party to lead Vietnam’s revolution, President Ho Chi Minh founded “Thanh Nien” newspaper and released its first issue on June 21, 1925. Li said that despite its small format and simple design and printing, the newspaper carried immense responsibility and mission, contributing to the establishment of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the decisive factor in the success of the country’s revolution in the past, today, and in the future.

Today, original copies of the early issues are on display at the relic site of the headquarters of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Youth League in Guangzhou city. An exhibition spotlighting the time President Ho Chi Minh spent in China is being held from May 10 to August 10 at the Guangzhou Uprising Memorial Hall, featuring a dedicated display of copies of Thanh Nien.

The following article was originally published by Nhân Dân.

Li Minghan, an intellectual from China’s Hong Kong who has devoted most of his life studying President Ho Chi Minh’s revolutionary career, described “Thanh nien” (Young people) newspaper, which laid foundation for Viet Nam’s revolutionary journalism a century ago, as a modest publication with great responsibility and mission.

In an interview with the Viet Nam News Agency on the occasion of Viet Nam’s Revolutionary Press Day (June 21), Li said that President Ho Chi Minh, drawing from his experience in the French communist movement and his role in founding the Le Paria (The Miserable) newspaper in Paris in 1922 to expose colonial crimes and unite the global anti-colonial struggle, understood the power of revolutionary journalism as a tool to popularise, mobilise, organise, and lead revolutionary movements.

During his stay in China’s Guangzhou city from 1924 to 1927 to prepare for the establishment of a Communist Party to lead Viet Nam’s revolution, President Ho Chi Minh founded “Thanh nien” newspaper and released its first issue on June 21, 1925. Li said that despite its small format and simple design and printing, the newspaper carried immense responsibility and mission, contributing to the establishment of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, the decisive factor in the success of the country’s revolution in the past, today, and in the future.

The newspaper was printed on a compact 18×24 cm paper size, with simple design and clear content.

Between June 21, 1925, and April 17, 1927, the newspaper published a total of 88 issues, with 100 copies of each edition distributed to Viet Nam by sailors, providing information and building solidarity within Viet Nam’s revolutionary movement and connecting it with communist movements in the region and the world.

Today, original copies of the early issues are on display at the relic site of the headquarters of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Youth League in Guangzhou city, Guangzhong province.

An exhibition spotlighting the time President Ho Chi Minh in China is taking place from May 10 to August 10 at the Guangzhou Uprising Memorial Hall, featuring a dedicated display of reproduced copies of Thanh Nien newspaper’s issues No. 63, 66, and 67. The event is held in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Viet Nam – China diplomatic relations and the Year of China-Viet Nam Humanistic Exchange 2025.

Xi Jinping commemorates revolutionary forerunner Chen Yun

At a meeting held on June 13 in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for learning from veteran leader Chen Yun and carrying forward his legacy.

Xi, who is also the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, acclaimed Chen Yun as a great proletarian revolutionary and statesman, and as one of the founding figures of the country’s socialist economy. He was a key member of both the Party’s first generation of central collective leadership with Mao Zedong at the core and the second generation of central collective leadership with Deng Xiaoping at the core.

Chen was born in 1905 and joined the Party in 1925. He died in 1995 at the age of 90.

Among the key points made by Xi Jinping in his address were:

  • Comrade Chen Yun was a great proletarian revolutionary, statesman, and outstanding Marxist, one of the founders and builders of China’s socialist economic construction, an outstanding leader of the party and the country who had been tested for a long time, and an important member of the party’s first-generation central leadership collective with Comrade Mao Zedong at the core and the party’s second-generation central leadership collective with Comrade Deng Xiaoping at the core, who had made major contributions to the development of the cause of the party and the people.
  • Comrade Chen Yun joined the Communist Party of China in 1925, and in his 70-year revolutionary career, he experienced many major events in which our party led the people in revolution, construction, and reform, participated in the formulation and organization of a series of major policy decisions made by the party Central Committee in different historical periods, and devoted his whole life to the development and victory of the new democratic revolution, the establishment and consolidation of China’s socialist system, and the pioneering and development of China’s reform, opening up, and socialist modernization.
  • During the period of the New Democratic Revolution, Comrade Chen Yun threw himself into the workers’ movement in the torrent of the Great Revolution and grew up to become a leader of the workers’ movement in the course of practical struggles. He took part in the Red Army’s Long March, firmly supported Comrade Mao Zedong’s correct propositions at the Zunyi Conference and supported the conference in establishing the correct leadership represented by Comrade Mao Zedong.
  • He participated in the leadership of the liberation of Northeast China and led the Northeast Base Area to take the lead in restoring the economy and supporting the national liberation war. He instructed cadres to “always pay attention to the new situation, new tasks, and new work methods in the new areas” and not to “mechanically apply the old experience of the old liberated areas to the new areas,” thus exploring useful experiences for our party to shift from war to peaceful construction.
  • During the period of socialist revolution and construction, Comrade Chen Yun was appointed to preside over and lead the nation’s financial and economic work at the beginning of the founding of New China, and under the leadership of the party Central Committee, he coordinated the forces from all quarters to win the “economic war” in the fields of grain, cotton, cotton cloth, and coal, and achieved national financial and economic unification in less than a year, stabilized financial prices, and economically consolidated the nascent people’s political power.
  • He opposed impatient and reckless progress in disregard of the actual conditions and the rush to achieve results, discovered the problems brought about by the “Great Leap Forward” at an early stage, participated in the deployment and leadership of the readjustment of the national economy, and paid special attention to solving the problems of agricultural difficulties and food shortages, thus playing an important role in extricating the national economy and the people’s livelihood from their predicament.
  • At a major historical juncture, he resolutely supported the reform and opening up advocated by Comrade Deng Xiaoping and resolutely upheld Comrade Deng Xiaoping’s position as the core of the central leadership collective and the authority of the party Central Committee. He actively promoted the peaceful reversal of unjust, false and wrongly decided cases, put forward important opinions on the drafting of the “Resolution on Several Historical Issues of the Party Since the Founding of the People’s Republic of China,” and supported Comrade Deng Xiaoping’s correct proposition on scientifically establishing Comrade Mao Zedong’s historical status and upholding and developing Mao Zedong Thought.
  • We should learn from Comrade Chen Yun’s lofty spiritual demeanour. He said: “The most pleasant thing for a person is to participate in the revolution and fight for the interests of the people. Anyone who leaves the people and the party cannot accomplish anything.” At critical moments, he always adhered to the correct political position and clearly showed his attitude. When the development of the party’s cause encountered difficulties, he was always able to keep a clear head, put forward unique views on the basis of careful consideration, and came up with effective ways to solve problems.
  • In the new era and new journey, we must strengthen our ideals and beliefs, establish confidence in victory, maintain political determination in the face of chaos and complexity, and not be afraid of clouds to cover our eyes. It is necessary to consciously practice the fundamental purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly, stand firmly on the people’s position, cultivate the feelings of the people, take the mass line of the party in the new era, investigate the people’s feelings, listen to the people’s voices, obey the people’s will, solve the people’s worries, and closely rely on the people to create historical achievements.
  • In the area of being in charge of economic work, Comrade Chen Yun put forward many important viewpoints and major measures and explored effective ways to creatively solve problems and open up the work situation. In the process of presiding over the formulation and implementation of the first five-year plan, he not only paid attention to learning from the experience of the Soviet Union, but also insisted on proceeding from China’s national conditions, making scientific arrangements, and steadily promoting socialist industrialization.
  • After the socialist transformation was basically completed, he actively explored the socialist economic system and economic system that suited the development of China’s productive forces and put forward the idea of “three main bodies and three supplements,” which provided important enlightenment for overcoming the shortcomings of the Soviet model.
  • After the reform and opening up, he profoundly summed up the positive and negative experiences of socialist economic construction and proposed that “the economic construction that our country is carrying out now is socialist economic construction, and the reform of the economic system is also the reform of the socialist economic system”
  • He stressed that vigorously cultivating and selecting tens of thousands of middle-aged and young cadres with both ability and political integrity is a strategic task that determines the future of the party and the country, and it is necessary to persist in combining the old, middle-aged and young cadres, maintain the continuity and stability of the contingent of cadres, and ensure that the party’s leadership is always in the hands of Marxists.
  • He stressed the need to vigorously promote those cadres who have strong party spirit, upright work style, and the courage to uphold principles, and actively support and implement the policy of making the contingent of cadres more revolutionary, younger, more knowledgeable, and more professional.
  • He pointed out: “The Communist Party must uphold party discipline at all times, whether it is working underground or in power.”
  • He put forward the important thesis that “the issue of the party style of the ruling party is an issue related to the life and death of the party,” stressing that “the issue of party style must be tackled with great attention and forever.” In order to maintain the flesh-and-blood ties between the party and the masses of the people, it is necessary to properly resolve the two key issues of earnestly safeguarding the people’s vital interests and resolutely opposing unhealthy tendencies within the party.
  • We should study Comrade Chen Yun’s scientific thinking and work methods. Persisting in seeking truth from facts is a distinctive characteristic of Comrade Chen Yun.
  • He regarded investigation and study as an important prerequisite for policy decision-making, stressing: “Leading organs should devote more than 90 percent of their time to investigation and study in formulating policies.”
  • In the new era and new journey, it is necessary to improve the quality of investigation and study, and through various channels and methods, accurately grasp the new situation, new problems, and new trends in economic and social development, accurately grasp the needs of the grassroots and the expectations of the masses and make policy decisions more in line with reality and the wishes of the masses.

A number of other speakers also addressed the meeting.

Continue reading Xi Jinping commemorates revolutionary forerunner Chen Yun

Tiananmen Square, 1989: The truth comes out, eventually

In the following article for the Morning Star, Dan Ross challenges the mainstream Western narrative of the 1989 Tiananmen Square events. Rather than being a “massacre of thousands of unarmed students”, as is typically presented, Dan argues that what occurred was a complex confrontation between the Chinese military and radicalised protesters, many of whom were armed.

Dan draws on contemporaneous coverage from The Washington Post and Wall Street Journal and other eyewitness sources to show that China’s authorities, after two months of Beijing being brought practically to a standstill, and with lengthy negotiations not bearing fruit, decided to peacefully disperse the protests. “Unarmed soldiers entered the square to begin the dispersal”, whereupon “they were set upon by groups of co-ordinated and armed protesters that remained, as was openly reported on at the time. Many dozens of soldiers are known to have been killed, as grisly images of lynched and burned soldiers from the events attest”.

The violence can accurately be described as clashes between armed protesters and soldiers, not a massacre of unarmed civilians on the Square.

The Western propaganda machine lost no time in spinning the story as a vicious attack by an authoritarian state on freedom-loving unarmed protestors. Dan writes:

It should come as no surprise that this co-ordinated propaganda campaign took place concurrently with the fall of socialism across central and eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. The US, then as now, remains committed to undermining and destroying Chinese socialism, and has relied heavily upon thinly veiled, CIA-sponsored bodies like Radio Free Asia, National Endowment for Democracy, and the fanatical anti-communist and fantasist Adrian Zenz, with the sole objective of bringing about the fall and disintegration of China, much as happened to the former USSR and Yugoslavia.

Ultimately, the article calls on readers to question the mainstream narrative of the “Tiananmen Massacre”, pointing out that it is just another piece of crass anti-China and anti-communist propaganda.

“As columns of tanks and tens of thousands of soldiers approached Tiananmen, many troops were set on by angry mobs… dozens of soldiers were pulled from trucks, severely beaten and left for dead.

“At an intersection west of the square, the body of a young soldier, who had been beaten to death, was stripped naked and hung from the side of a bus.  Another soldier’s corpse was strung at an intersection east of the square.”

“Radicalised protesters, some now armed with guns, and vehicles commandeered in clashes with the military.”

“Other scenes show soldiers’ corpses and demonstrators stripping automatic rifles off unresisting soldiers.”

These accounts are taken, not from the official version of the Chinese government, but from the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal in the immediate aftermath of the events of June 4 1989.

As the US, its allies, and cheerleaders in the media step up their campaign of anti-communist and Sinophobic rhetoric in the growing cold war against China, we can expect to hear an altogether different — if more familiar — narrative about the “massacre” of thousands of innocent students in a “brutal authoritarian crackdown” this week.

The “events” in fact began two months earlier in April, when students gathered — somewhat ironically — to mourn and commemorate the passing of a senior Communist Party leader, Hu Yaobang, later joined by workers — again ironically — concerned by the inflationary effects of market-liberalising economic reforms.

Beijing’s iconic central square, and much of the city, was all but paralysed for weeks. Following lengthy but failed attempts at a negotiated settlement between the government and student leaders (presenting disparate and undefined demands) and no end in sight to the paralysis of the capital, the authorities eventually ordered the peaceful dispersal of the crowds from the square, that was largely was achieved by June 3.

Individual accounts of army snipers and soldiers gunning down fleeing students have been discredited both by a far greater number of eyewitnesses contradicting it, including US journalists (such as the Washington Post’s Jay Matthews), and television footage of an orderly dispersal. Spanish television network TVE had a camera crew on the square covering events, and reported no evidence of a massacre.

No doubt the image of the infamous “tank man” has sprung to your mind; it is well worth watching the footage to the end: the outcome might surprise you!

When soldiers — unarmed — originally entered the square to begin the dispersal, they were set upon by groups of co-ordinated and armed protesters that remained, as was openly reported on at the time. Many dozens of soldiers are known to have been killed, as grisly images of lynched and burned soldiers from the events attest.

Much of the subsequent violence occurred following the dispersal, between June 4-5, and took place elsewhere across the city, rather than on the square itself. The violence can accurately be described as clashes between armed protesters and soldiers, not a massacre of unarmed civilians on the Square.

Continue reading Tiananmen Square, 1989: The truth comes out, eventually

Remarks marking the 26th anniversary of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia

Several hundred people packed the Bishop Nikolaj Community Centre in West London on the evening of Saturday May 24 for a remembrance and discussion event marking 26 years since NATO’s war of aggression against Serbia and the former Yugoslavia, organised by the Round Table of Serbian organisations and community groups in the United Kingdom. Among those present were Serbian Ambassador Goran Aleksić, diplomats from the Belarus Embassy and journalists from the Xinhua News Agency and China Daily.

The meeting was preceded by a memorial service in the adjacent Serbian Orthodox Church of Saint Sava, where prayers offered included those for the three Chinese journalists killed when US-led NATO bombed the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade.

A panel discussion, chaired by retired academic Michael Stenton, featured Misha Gavrilović and Marko Gasić, co-chairs of the British-Serbian Alliance for Peace; Dr. Kate Hudson, Vice-President of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and author of ‘Breaking the South Slav Dream’; and Laurie Mayer, former BBC and Sky News presenter and broadcast journalist. And, following a break for refreshments and networking, there were contributions from veteran peace activist Carol Turner, who co-founded and led the Committee for Peace in the Balkans with the late Alice Mahon MP in 1994; and Keith Bennett, co-editor of Friends of Socialist China.

The evening was closed with a brief recital from Zorka Maksimovic.

Speakers pointed out that, contrary to the propaganda advanced in Britain, there had been no threat of a Greater Serbia but rather of a Greater NATO. The real meaning of NATO expansion was exposed, namely military aggression beyond its borders. The war against Yugoslavia was neither humanitarian nor legal. Rather, it was what the Nuremburg trials established as the supreme international crime – a war of aggression. The war was characterised by numerous atrocities – the bombing of passenger trains, refugee convoys, factories, hospitals, the TV station and the Chinese Embassy. Depleted Uranium was used, condemning future generations and the environment to its lethal effects.

The wounds of the conflict have not healed. Serbian sovereignty is still being transgressed, for example on the question of Kosovo. Moreover, the war had opened Pandora’s Box – that the Western powers could attack whomever they wanted. This was soon seen in Iraq and is still ongoing – in NATO’s proxy war in Ukraine and Israel’s war against the Palestinian people. In Laurie Mayer’s words, the war against Yugoslavia represented raw imperialism run amuck.

The following is Keith’s message delivered at the meeting on behalf of Friends of Socialist China.

Your Excellency

Ladies and Gentlemen

Dear Friends

On behalf of Friends of Socialist China, I’d like to express our thanks to the organisers of this eventfor inviting us to join them in marking the solemn occasion of the 26th Anniversary of the NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

With war raging in Europe and the Middle East, it is appropriate that we remember and mark this anniversary of the first time that full-scale war returned to our continent since the defeat of fascism in 1945.

This is also the 80th anniversary year of that victory. The peoples of both Serbia and China played heroic and indispensable parts in the defeat of fascism. They pinned down hundreds of thousands, indeed millions, of axis troops and liberated their countries, principally on the basis of self-reliance.

The enduring friendship between China and Serbia has its root in this common struggle on the eastern and western fronts. The 1969 Yugoslav film, The Bridge, vividly depicted those days. It was one of the first foreign films to be shown in China at the start of reform and opening up. Both the film, and through it the song Bella Ciao, became favourites of a generation of Chinese people, including President Xi Jinping.

Dear Friends

As you know, on May 7, 1999, in one of the gross violations of international law that characterised this war of aggression, US-led NATO brazenly bombed the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade. Three journalists, including a newly married couple, from the Xinhua News Agency and the Guangming Daily, were killed and many more people were injured. The husband of the third journalist was blinded.

The indestructible friendship between China and Serbia, which we might call China’s best friend in Europe, is the most fitting tribute to their memory, demonstrating as it does that their sacrifice was not in vain.

As President Xi said during his June 2016 state visit to Serbia, having paid tribute to the martyrs, “The Serbian people, with an indomitable spirit, have revived time and again in history… which the Chinese people admire very much.”

In today’s complicated and tense international situation, the friendship between China and Serbia is an important factor for peace and stability. As friends of China, it is completely natural and appropriate that we think of Serbia, too, as a brotherly and friendly country. And the Serbian diaspora and community here as our brothers and sisters.

This evening, we make new friends and renew old friendships with people with whom we campaigned and marched shoulder to shoulder back in 1999.

Let’s continue to work together for peace and justice.

Thank you once again.

Tongogara Memorial Talk: African liberation and China

On Saturday May 17, 2025, the Free Mumia Abu Jamal Campaign UK, which campaigns in solidarity with the African-American freedom fighter and revolutionary who has been imprisoned since 1981, the majority of that time on ‘death row’, held a meeting and social event in memory of Comrade Tongogara (born Danny Morrell), who passed away on May 11, 2023, after a lifetime of work in the anti-racist, anti-imperialist and Marxist-Leninist movements. The UK campaign in support of Mumia was launched on Tongogara’s initiative.

The meeting was held in Vida’s ‘My Social’, a community space in Brixton, south London, especially but not exclusively for seniors. It is named after Vida Walsh, a pioneering African-Caribbean community and social activist in the Brixton area in particular. In the 1970s, Vida set up and ran an informal ‘tea and chat club’ for pensioners in Brixton. Despite the support of Age Concern Lambeth and the local residents’ association, resources were limited. Because of this, members congregated in each other’s homes, enabling pensioners to meet on a regular basis to chat and to maintain contacts within the community. This was particularly important for those older residents who, for whatever reason, were unable to rely on familial support structures for advice or assistance. To have a dedicated community space for this work was Vida’s dream and mission.

The campaign invited Friends of Socialist China co-editor Keith Bennett, who was a friend and comrade of Tongogara since the 1970s, to give a talk on the theme of African liberation and China, combining as it does two key aspects of Tongogara’s life and work.

Keith’s talk sought to weave together Tongogara’s own world outlook and political path with China’s historical support to the African revolution in the 1960s and 1970s in particular, citing examples especially from Zimbabwe, Eritrea, Congo, Guinea Bissau, Niger and South Africa.

The talk was followed by a lively ‘Q&A’ and discussion, focused especially on events around Angola’s independence in November 1975 and on present-day relations between China and Africa.

The meeting also heard a heartfelt tribute to Tongogara from Cecil Gutzmore, veteran Pan-African community activist and historian, and a stalwart of the campaign, which was read on his behalf by Wilf Dixon, as well as a brief report from that day’s Palestine solidarity demonstration in central London, which was attended by an estimated 600,000 people.

The formal proceedings were followed by a social with music and delicious home-prepared food.

The following is the main body of Keith’s speech.

It is an honour for me to be invited by the Free Mumia Abu Jamal Campaign UK to give this first Tongogara Memorial Talk, just over two years since he joined the ancestors. I hope it will be the first of many and that this will in some small way help to keep his memory alive in the way he would surely have wanted – enabling others to be inspired by his life and work, to learn from his example and to carry on the cause to which he devoted the great majority of his years.

Let me take this opportunity, on behalf of Friends of Socialist China, to congratulate the Free Mumia Campaign for all the steadfast and unflinching work you have done over years, work in which Tongogara was at the heart, to ensure that this unyielding revolutionary and internationalist is not forgotten in the hell hole of the US prison system.

As Mumia himself has said: “Know this: throughout it all. I have never felt alone. To the eye, I was alone in solitary confinement, on death row, but the eye cannot really see all that is, for behind brick and steel, I felt our love, sometimes like a wave, sometimes like a whisper, but always there, ever present.”

Why should I be giving this talk today? Perhaps it’s for the organisers rather than me to say. But I’m the co-editor of Friends of Socialist China, a platform established four years ago to support the People’s Republic of China and promote understanding of Chinese socialism and the Chinese revolution.

The Chinese revolution and its impact on the world has fascinated me since my early teens. And that’s essentially how I came to know Tongogara. Anyone who knew him, would appreciate that for Tongogara, the Chinese revolution and the teachings of Mao Zedong were central to his outlook on life – a veritable political compass, alongside his unshakeable commitment to the liberation of African people worldwide. At home and abroad, to borrow Marcus Garvey’s expression.

I can’t remember exactly when I first met him, but we certainly knew each other by the summer of 1976, just before my 18th birthday. Danny Morrell, as he was then known, was at that time a member of a small communist organisation, which was going to start producing a factory newspaper for the engineering factory in north London where he and a couple of other comrades had taken jobs.

Obviously, it would have marked the end of their employment, and hence of the political project in which they were engaged, had they openly distributed the paper themselves. That was my job and the night before I stayed at Danny’s bedsit to be there for the early morning shift.

That night we talked – obviously – and that’s when I started to really get to know him. I was touched by the loving photos of family back in Jamaica, which held pride of place alongside the posters produced by the Youth Forces for National Liberation (YFNL), a vibrant Marxist-Leninist organisation in Jamaica at that time.  One of them commemorated the Morant Bay Rebellion of 1865.

Continue reading Tongogara Memorial Talk: African liberation and China

Ho Chi Minh’s vital contributions to the global socialist and anti-imperialist struggle

Marking the 135th anniversary of the birth of the country’s revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh, May 19, 2025, the Vietnamese press has carried numerous articles reflecting the worldwide respect felt by progressive people for their national hero.

In one such article, a Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondent in Beijing, interviewed Professor Pan Jin’e, a senior fellow at the Academy of Marxism under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Pan described Ho Chi Minh as the founder of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, a great revolutionary, a brilliant strategist, and a moral exemplar. She also highlighted his role as a leader of anti-colonial movements across Asia, Africa, and Latin America in the 20th century, as well as his significant place in the history of the international communist movement.

She noted that President Ho Chi Minh remained steadfast in his internationalist ideals. He joined the French Communist Party, actively collaborated with leaders of other socialist countries, and maintained close ties with the Chinese revolution. Alongside leaders such as Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, he helped build the traditional friendship between Vietnam and China – a relationship that remains cherished by both parties and peoples.

As a representative of the Communist International, Ho Chi Minh supported revolutionary movements worldwide, particularly in China, Laos, and Cambodia, playing an active role in anti-colonial struggles and proletarian revolutions.

Another article carried by Nhân Dân noted that: “With the friendship of ‘the proletariat in all four directions are brothers’, Ho Chi Minh harshly criticised some comrades in the Communist International for incorrectly assessing the colonial issue and confidently affirmed that the proletarian revolution was completely capable of breaking out first in the colonial countries, thereby creating conditions for workers and labourers in the mother countries to carry out the revolution to liberate the class and liberate society.”

The following article was originally published by Nhân Dân.

President Ho Chi Minh made significant contributions to Viet Nam and the international community, according to Professor Pan Jin’e, a senior fellow at the Academy of Marxism under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

In an interview with a Viet Nam News Agency (VNA) correspondent in Beijing on the occasion of the 135th birth anniversary of the late Vietnamese leader (May 19, 1890–2025), Pan described Ho Chi Minh as the founder of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam, a great revolutionary, a brilliant strategist, and a moral exemplar. She also highlighted his role as a leader of anti-colonial movements across Asia, Africa, and Latin America in the 20th century, including his significance in the history of the international communist movement.

She emphasised that his contributions were reflected not only in Viet Nam’s national liberation and national building efforts but also in their profound impact on global struggles against colonialism and the international socialist movement.

Ho Chi Minh led the independence movement, founded the Communist Party of Viet Nam, and waged resistance wars against colonial and imperial forces, devoting his entire life to national reunification. He also guided the country’s socialist development in politics, economy and culture, spearheaded land reform, poverty alleviation, and national unity policies.

President Ho Chi Minh remained steadfast in his internationalist ideals. He joined the French Communist Party, actively collaborated with leaders of other socialist countries, and maintained close ties with the Chinese revolution. Alongside leaders such as Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, he helped build the traditional friendship between Viet Nam and China—a relationship that remains cherished by both Parties and peoples.

As a representative of the Communist International, Ho Chi Minh supported revolutionary movements worldwide, particularly in China, Laos, and Cambodia, playing an active role in anti-colonial struggles and proletarian revolutions.

According to the Chinese scholar, whether during Viet Nam’s socialist revolutionary era or its ongoing doi moi (renewal) cause, Ho Chi Minh’s status as a national hero and spiritual leader has never diminished. In 2019, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) honoured him as a “Hero of National Liberation and a Great Man of Culture,” acknowledging his historic contributions to humanity.

Reflecting on the spirit of unity embodied in Ho Chi Minh’s Thought, Pan underscored that under his leadership and that of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, the country achieved the historic victory of national reunification on April 30, 1975. This triumph is a powerful testament to his famous teachings: “Unity, unity, great unity. Success, success, great success!” National unity, she noted, remains the most vital force behind Viet Nam’s revolutionary success.

The Chinese scholar expressed her belief that the Vietnamese people will always remember President Ho Chi Minh’s final wishes, continue to uphold national solidarity, and write new chapters in the nation’s proud history. They will strive to build an independent, free, happy, prosperous, and civilised Viet Nam by 2050, fulfilling the late leader’s long-cherished dream of seeing Viet Nam stand shoulder to shoulder with the great powers of the five continents, she continued.

Keith Bennett: WW2 victory is inseparable from the heroic struggle of the Soviet and Chinese peoples

The Workers Party of Britain (WPB) packed London’s Bolivar Hall, the cultural premises of the Venezuelan Embassy, on Saturday May 10 for its celebration of the 80th anniversary of the victory over fascism in the European theatre of World War II.

The meeting was attended by Dzmitry Kozlovsky, Chargé d’ Affaires, and Andrei Miskevich , Counsellor, of the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus; Alexander Gusarov, Minister Counsellor and Deputy Head of Mission, and Timofey Kunitskiy, First Secretary, of the Embassy of the Russian Federation; Minister Zhao Fei and Zhen Sitong from the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; and Wilfredo Hernández Maya, Counsellor of the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. 

The meeting heard a message of greetings from Workers Party leader George Galloway, filmed in Moscow’s Red Square, where he was attending the celebrations.

Chaired and introduced by WPB General Secretary Paul Cannon, the meeting was addressed by the diplomatic representatives of Belarus, Russia and Venezuela; Mick Stott from the WPB’s Veterans Group and the No 2 NATO Campaign; Louise Scrivens from the No Conscription League; Jesse Williams from the British Preparatory Committee for the World Festival of Youth; Shanaz Saddique, WPB National Organiser; and Keith Bennett of Friends of Socialist China, who spoke on the war in Asia.

Keith began by congratulating the WPB on organising the meeting and thanking them for the invitation. Extending our greetings to the diplomats present, Keith recalled that FOSC had held its own celebration of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in this same hall in September last year. Expressing his thanks once again, he noted that both events showed how the comrades of the revolutionary government of Venezuela, despite the outrageous pressures, aggression, sanctions and threats to which their country has been and is still subjected, can always be relied on for their support, collaboration and friendship in the best traditions of internationalism.

The following is the text of the main body of Keith’s speech.

Today’s meeting is a timely initiative – 80 years on, the struggle against fascism, against imperialist war and genocide, for the rights of nations, and for a people’s peace and a better life for working people have lost none of their poignancy or urgency.

It is right that we remember this anniversary. And that we remember it from the standpoint of the working class rather than just that of the ruling circles. The war touched the lives of every family in this country just as it did those of every family in all the countries that were swept into its maelstrom. And the victory was the result of the broadest possible unity of democratic forces worldwide.

But whilst the people of every country, including the progressive and democratic forces in the axis powers themselves, played their part, above all, this victory was inseparable from the heroic exploits, struggle and sacrifice of the great Soviet people of all nationalities and the great Chinese people.

Today, we celebrate the victorious end of the war in Europe, but the war in East Asia and the Pacific still had more than three months to run and whilst it was clear that Japanese militarism would be defeated, nobody could be sure how long that would take and how many lives it would still claim. That was the sobering reality to which people awoke after the greatly deserved revelry of the first VE Day.

So, in being asked to speak about the war in the east on this occasion, I’ll try to draw out the essential relationship between what were the two key fronts of a single united struggle. Fronts that were mutually reinforcing and inseparable. And at the heart of this single struggle was the combat alliance, the friendship forged in blood, between the peoples of China, Russia and the other constituent republics of the USSR.

The anti-fascist war in China started earliest and lasted the longest. Japanese imperialism, which had first embarked on the road of aggression against China in the nineteenth century, occupied China’s three northeastern provinces in 1931, creating the puppet state of Manchukuo. In 1937, Japan began an all-out war of aggression against China. In the course of 14 years, China suffered over 35 million casualties.  As Xi Jinping put it in his speech marking the 70th anniversary of victory:

“The victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression is the first complete victory won by China in its resistance against foreign aggression in modern times. This great triumph crushed the plot of the Japanese militarists to colonise and enslave China and put an end to China’s national humiliation of suffering successive defeats at the hands of foreign aggressors in modern times.”

He added: “During the war, with huge national sacrifice, the Chinese people held their ground in the main theatre in the East of the World Anti-Fascist War, thus making a major contribution to its victory.”

And as then Chinese leader Hu Jintao put it 10 years previously:

“The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression constitutes a glorious page in the history of the World Anti-Fascist War, for it broke out much earlier and lasted the longest. For a long time, we Chinese contained and pinned down the main forces of Japanese militarism in the China theatre and annihilated more than 1.5 million Japanese troops. This played a decisive role in the total defeat of the Japanese aggressors. The war of resistance lent a strategic support to battles of China’s allies, assisted the strategic operations in the Europe and Pacific theatres, and restrained and disrupted the attempt of Japanese, German and Italian fascists to coordinate their strategic operations… The victory of the war in China sets a shining example of the weak vanquishing the strong for the people all over the world and boosted the confidence and morale of the oppressed and victimised nations to carry on their liberation wars.”

In a word, by their heroic struggle the Chinese people not only rose up to save their nation and civilisation. By pinning down huge numbers of aggressor troops, they prevented Japan from attacking the Soviet Union, thereby ensuring that the Red Army never had to fight on two fronts simultaneously, something that was absolutely crucial to expediting both a victorious conclusion to the war in Europe but also to an overall and decisive victory over the axis powers as a whole.

In 1931, Soviet leader JV Stalin uttered these prophetic words: ““We are 50-100 years behind the advanced countries. We have to close that gap in 10 years. Either we do it or we will be wiped out.”

In putting matters in this way, Stalin was mindful of threats to both the USSR’s East and West.

Since the emergence of Japan as a capitalist nation after the bourgeois revolution of the late 1860s known as the Meiji Restoration, the ruling class of Japan, a country lacking in most raw materials, had cast covetous eyes at the Far East of Russia and at Siberia, with its vast area, small population, but almost limitless mineral and natural wealth.

In 1904, Japan launched a war against Russia, winning a stunning victory the next year. This served notice to the whole world of the emergence of Japan as a major imperialist power, whilst the shock of Russia’s defeat was a major contributory factor to the Russian Revolution of 1905.

Following the October Revolution, Japan joined all the imperialist powers in the war of intervention against the infant Soviet state. In 1918, Japan occupied Russia’s far eastern provinces, including the port of Vladivostok, and parts of Siberia. The Red Army forced their withdrawal in 1922.

Continue reading Keith Bennett: WW2 victory is inseparable from the heroic struggle of the Soviet and Chinese peoples

Xi attends Russia’s Victory Day celebrations

Following an intensive program of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 8, Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the grand parade marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory in the Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany on May 9 in Red Square as the chief guest of honour.

Joining the Chinese and Russian presidents were the national leaders of 26 other countries, as follows:

  • Abkhazia
  • Armenia
  • Belarus
  • Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Brazil
  • Burkina Faso
  • Republic of Congo
  • Cuba
  • Egypt
  • Equatorial Guinea
  • Ethiopia
  • Guinea Bissau
  • Kazakhstan
  • Kyrgyzstan
  • Mongolia
  • Myanmar
  • Palestine
  • Serbia
  • Slovakia
  • South Ossetia
  • Tajikistan
  • Turkmenistan
  • Uzbekistan
  • Venezuela
  • Vietnam
  • Zimbabwe

Additionally, high level representatives came from a number of other countries, including India, Indonesia, Nicaragua, and South Africa, as well as from international organisations.

The leader of Laos had to cancel his planned visit after succumbing to a serious COVID infection.

Military units from a number of countries also took part in the parade namely:

Members of the Commonwealth of Independent States who participated in the Great Patriotic War as constituent republics of the Soviet Union:

  • Azerbaijan
  • Belarus
  • Kazakhstan
  • Kyrgyzstan
  • Tajikistan
  • Turkmenistan
  • Uzbekistan

Friendly Countries:

  • China
  • Vietnam
  • Laos
  • Mongolia
  • Myanmar
  • Egypt

The largest contingent of troops was sent by China.

Additionally, following the parade, Vladimir Putin met with a group of military officers from the Democratic Republic of Korea (DPRK) who had taken part in the recent battles to liberate Kursk from Ukrainian aggression.

In his speech at the parade, President Putin said:

“Today, we are all united by the feelings of joy and grief, pride and gratitude, and admiration for the generation that crushed Nazism and won freedom and peace for all humanity at the cost of millions of lives.

“We remember the lessons of World War II and will never agree with the distortion of those events or attempts to justify the murderers and slander the true victors.

“Our duty is to defend the honour of the Red Army soldiers and commanders, and the heroism of fighters of different ethnic backgrounds who will forever remain Russian soldiers in world history.

Continue reading Xi attends Russia’s Victory Day celebrations

An unexpected friendly encounter: Ambassador Wang Yajun pays tribute to veteran artists from the DPRK

The following article, which was originally published on the website of the Chinese Embassy in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), relates how Ambassador Wang Yajun and his staff members visited the fine arts exhibition in the capital Pyongyang held in honour of April 15’s 113th birth anniversary of the DPRK’s founding leader Kim Il Sung.

To his surprise, he met there with two old artists in their 90s from the Korean People’s Army. They fought side by side with the Chinese People’s Volunteers more than 70 years ago and have a special bond with the Chinese people.

92-year-old Korean People’s Artist Li Lushan said that he had participated in many major battles, such as blocking the US Army’s Incheon Landing. In 1951, he was seriously injured, and it was the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army that sent him to Changchun, Jilin for treatment. During that time, the Chinese people selflessly donated blood for him and took great care of him. It was China and the Chinese people who gave him a second life.

Cui Shigen, a 90-year-old painter from the Songhua Academy of Fine Arts in the DPRK, said that the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army soldiers had visited his home and encouraged him by patting his shoulders when they heard that he was going to join the army. Later, he fought with the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army on the Eastern Front and participated in post-war reconstruction. At a celebration party, he also created portraits of Chairman Kim Il Sung and Chairman Mao Zedong, which were highly praised by the army leaders and soldiers.

The article noted that the two artists are not only household names in the DPRK. Their work is also very popular in China.

Ambassador Wang paid tribute to the two veteran artists for their contributions to national independence, development and China-DPRK friendship, wished them good health and longevity, and said that through their works, he felt the great love of the Korean people for their national leaders. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea. “I believe that under the leadership of the Workers’ Party of Korea headed by General Secretary Kim Jong Un, the Korean people will surely achieve greater success in the journey of creating a new era of national comprehensive rejuvenation. This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the Chinese People’s Volunteers’ participation in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea. I believe that under the strategic guidance of General Secretary Xi Jinping and General Secretary Kim Jog Un, the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK, which was forged with blood, will surely be inherited and developed, and will continue to move to a higher level, benefiting the people of the two countries.”

The article was published in Chinese and has been machine translated.

In early spring of April, the “Exhibition of Fine Arts by Veteran Artists in Memory of the 113th Anniversary of the Birth of Chairman Kim Il Sung” was grandly held at the Pyongyang International Cultural Center. On the 20th, Ambassador Wang Yajun of the Chinese Embassy in North Korea and his delegation visited the exhibition.

In the exhibition hall, oil paintings such as “Mangyongdae Residence” and “Spring in Mt. Paektu” vividly show Chairman Kim Il Sung’s revolutionary career and glorious achievements in his dedication to the independence and prosperity of North Korea and the happiness of the people. Korean paintings such as “Golden Autumn” and “In a Greenhouse Benefiting the People’s Livelihood” reflect from multiple angles the fruitful results achieved by General Secretary Kim Jong Un in leading the North Korean people to create a new era of national comprehensive rejuvenation. In addition, there are many exquisite works that vividly present the unique and beautiful natural scenery of North Korea.

What Ambassador Wang and his delegation did not expect was that there were many famous old North Korean artists participating in the exhibition. Among them, two old painters in their 90s were from the People’s Army. They fought side by side with the Chinese People’s Volunteers more than 70 years ago and have a special bond with the Chinese people.

92-year-old Korean People’s Artist Li Lushan said that he had participated in many major battles, such as blocking the US Army’s Incheon Landing. In 1951, he was seriously injured and it was the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army that sent him to Changchun, Jilin for treatment. During that time, the Chinese people selflessly donated blood for him and took great care of him. It was China and the Chinese people who gave him a second life.

Cui Shigen, a 90-year-old painter from the Songhua Academy of Fine Arts in North Korea, said that the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army soldiers had visited his home and encouraged him by patting his shoulders when they heard that he was going to join the army. Later, he fought with the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army on the Eastern Front and participated in post-war reconstruction. At a celebration party, he also created portraits of Chairman Kim Il-sung and Chairman Mao Zedong, which were highly praised by the army leaders and soldiers. When he was moved, Cui Shigen sang the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army Song in Chinese with Ambassador Wang and his entourage. The sincere and friendly atmosphere deeply touched everyone at the scene.

Today, the two old artists are not only household names in North Korea, but their Korean paintings and oil paintings are also very popular in China.

Ambassador Wang paid tribute to the two veteran artists for their contributions to national independence, development and China-DPRK friendship, wished them good health and longevity, and said that through the affectionate works, he felt the great love of the Korean people for their national leaders. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers’ Party of Korea. I believe that under the leadership of the Workers’ Party of Korea headed by General Secretary Kim Jong-un, the Korean people will surely achieve greater success in the journey of creating a new era of national comprehensive rejuvenation. This year also marks the 75th anniversary of the Chinese People’s Volunteers’ participation in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. I believe that under the strategic guidance of General Secretary Xi Jinping and General Secretary Kim Jong-un, the traditional friendship between China and the DPRK, which was forged with blood, will surely be inherited and developed, and will continue to move to a higher level, benefiting the people of the two countries and making greater contributions to maintaining regional peace.

Second International Anti-Fascist Forum in Moscow

The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF) held the second International Anti-Fascist Forum in Moscow, from April 22–24 as the Russian capital prepared for a massive international celebration on May 9 of the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory over Hitler fascism.

The conference was attended by 164 delegations from 91 countries, representing communist and left-wing parties and progressive mass organisations.

Addressing the opening session on behalf of the Communist Party of China, Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui noted that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the Victory of the Chinese People in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the Victory of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War. The Chinese and Russian peoples, unafraid of threats and violence, fought in bloody battles, made enormous national sacrifices to contain the onslaught and destroy the aggressors, protect the state sovereignty and dignity of the country, and thus made an important historical contribution to the Victory in the World Anti-Fascist War.

He stressed that China and the Communist Party of China are willing to work with all progressive forces, including the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, to uphold the post-war world order, take the 80th anniversary of the UN as an opportunity to implement genuine multilateralism, firmly safeguard the authority and role of the UN, ensure real implementation of the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world, as well as an accessible and inclusive economic globalisation, effectively promote the democratisation of international relations, and promote the formation of a more just and reasonable new model of global governance.

The following article was originally published on the website of the Chinese Embassy in Moscow. It was published in Russian and has been machine translated.

Further information and commentary on the forum were published by People’s Democracy, People’s World, the New Worker and Peoples Dispatch.

On April 23, Ambassador Zhang Hanhui took part in the International Anti-Fascist Conference organized by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. The meeting was chaired by the First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, First Deputy Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Russian-Chinese Friendship Society I.I. Melnikov. The Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation G.A. Zyuganov delivered a keynote speech at the conference. More than 400 representatives of communist parties, workers and left-wing forces from 91 countries took part in the event.

In his speech, Ambassador Zhang Hanhui noted that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the Victory of the Chinese People in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the Victory of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War. The Chinese and Russian peoples, unafraid of threats and violence, fought in bloody battles, made enormous national sacrifices to contain the onslaught and destroy the aggressors, protect the state sovereignty and dignity of the country, and thus made an important historical contribution to the Victory in the World Anti-Fascist War.

Zhang Hanhui stressed that China and the Communist Party of China are willing to work with all progressive forces, including the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, to uphold the post-war world order, take the 80th anniversary of the UN as an opportunity to implement genuine multilateralism, firmly safeguard the authority and role of the UN, ensure real implementation of the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world, as well as an accessible and inclusive economic globalization, effectively promote the democratization of international relations, and promote the formation of a more just and reasonable new model of global governance.

The forum participants called on all progressive forces to unite in a joint fight against any manifestations of colonialism and Nazism, to defend the results of victory in World War II, as well as the principles of international justice and impartiality.

After the forum, Ambassador Zhang Hanhui held a warm and friendly meeting with the Chairman of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation G.A. Zyuganov, during which issues of developing relations between the parties of the two countries were discussed.

Xi Jinping: Learning from history to build together a brighter future

On May 7, Chinese President Xi Jinping began a state visit to Russia where he will also attend the celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union at the invitation of his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Ahead of his arrival, the Chinese leader published an article in the government newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta (Russian Gazette).

In his article President Xi recalled that: “Ten years ago around this time, I came to Russia to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the victory. During that visit, I made a special arrangement to meet with 18 representatives of Russian veterans who endured the blood and fire of battlefields during the Soviet Union’s Great Patriotic War and the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. Their unyielding resolve and indomitable bearing left an indelible impression on me. In the past few years, General M. Gareyev, Major General T. Shchudlo and other veterans passed away. I pay my deepest tribute to them and to all veterans – from generals to the rank and file-for their extraordinary service and heroic feats in securing the victory over fascists around the world. We will never forget them.”

Xi noted that: “During the World Anti-Fascist War, the Chinese and Russian peoples fought shoulder to shoulder and supported each other. In the darkest hours of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Soviet Volunteer Group, which was part of the Soviet Air Force, came to Nanjing, Wuhan and Chongqing to fight alongside the Chinese people, bravely engaging Japanese invaders in aerial combat – many sacrificing their precious lives.”

He added that: “At the critical juncture of the Soviet Union’s Great Patriotic War, Yan Baohang, a legendary intelligence agent of the Communist Party of China (CPC) who was hailed as the ‘Richard Sorge of the East,’ provided the Soviet Union with primary-source intelligence.”

[Yan Baohang (1895-1968) was an intelligence agent of the CPC and the Communist International, entrusted by later Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. Based behind enemy lines in Chongqing, in May 1941 the one-time student at Edinburgh University was able to discover the exact date – June 22 – of the planned German attack on the Soviet Union. He managed to get the information to the communist base area in Yan’an by June 6, where Mao Zedong ordered it to be conveyed to Moscow and where it reached Stalin, enabling important preparations to be made in time. On June 30, eight days after the German attack, Stalin telegraphed Yan’an, to thank Yan “for his accurate information that prompted us to prepare for what’s to come.”

[Richard Sorge (1895-1944) was one of the most brilliant intelligence officers of the Communist International and the Soviet Red Army’s Fourth Department, later known as the GRU or military intelligence. Known particularly for his work in Shanghai and then in Tokyo, he was eventually arrested by the Japanese authorities in October 1941 and hanged in Tokyo on November 7, 1944, the fascists having deliberately chosen to execute this outstanding and courageous internationalist fighter for communism on the anniversary of the October Socialist Revolution. He was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.]

Drawing attention to the contemporary significance of the 80th anniversary, Xi wrote: “Eighty years ago, the forces of justice around the world, including China and the Soviet Union, united in courageous battles against their common foes and defeated the overbearing fascist powers. Eighty years later today, however, unilateralism, hegemonism, bullying, and coercive practices are severely undermining our world. Again, humankind has come to a crossroads of unity or division, dialogue or confrontation, win-win cooperation or zero-sum games… We must learn from history, especially the hard lessons of the Second World War. We must draw wisdom and strength from the great victory of the World Anti-Fascist War and resolutely resist all forms of hegemonism and power politics. We must work together to build a brighter future for humanity.”

Continue reading Xi Jinping: Learning from history to build together a brighter future

Book review: Torkil Lauesen – The Long Transition Towards Socialism and the End of Capitalism

The following text by Carlos Martinez, written for the May-June 2025 issue of Communist Review, reviews The Long Transition Towards Socialism and the End of Capitalism, by Danish revolutionary intellectual Torkil Lauesen.

The review highlights and explores a number of key themes from the book, including the assessment of the history of the global working class movement within a framework of historical materialism; the possibility that humanity has reached a turning point and that capitalism has run out of ways to sustain itself; and the indispensability of constructing a global united front composed of the socialist countries, the national liberation movements, the anti-imperialist forces of the Global South, and the progressive forces in the advanced capitalist countries.

The review notes: “One of the most significant aspects of The Long Transition is its serious attempt to understand and explain contemporary China, and in particular to assess the results – and perhaps necessity – of the Reform and Opening Up process introduced in 1978, gradually introducing market mechanisms to the economy, allowing private ownership of capital, encouraging investment from abroad, and integrating China into the global economy.”

Lauesen’s investigations of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics lead him to the conclusion that “the importance of socialist-oriented development in China can hardly be overestimated. It can tip the global balance of power decisively in favour of a socialist world order.”

As Carlos states in his review, The Long Transition Towards Socialism and the End of Capitalism is a richly rewarding and important read. It can be purchased or downloaded from Iskra Books.

Long transition

The latest book from Danish revolutionary intellectual Torkil Lauesen, The Long Transition Towards Socialism and the End of Capitalism, is highly ambitious in its scope, providing an assessment of the first two centuries of humanity’s attempts to build socialism, and outlining some of the necessary or possible next steps on that journey.

Lauesen describes in some detail the history thus far of the “long transition” from capitalism to socialism – starting with the first rumblings of proletarian revolt in mid-19th century Europe, then moving on to the Paris Commune, the rise and fall of the German workers’ movement, the October Revolution, the early attempts at socialist construction in the Soviet Union, the eastward shift of the revolutionary centre of gravity in the post-WW2 era, and the ongoing socialist project in the People’s Republic of China.

These milestones are contextualised within a long-running, dialectical struggle between two social systems. While all except the last are by now studied as history rather than as contemporary politics, and while many failed to achieve their stated aims, they all form links in an ongoing chain: the long transition to socialism. Lauesen writes that “the struggle and suffering of millions of communists and socialists for the past two hundred years have not been in vain, but are contributions to this long process of creating a better world.” (p2)

Such a sentiment – heartening to those of us that have lived through a low ebb of the communist tide – echoes the powerful words of Korean revolutionary Kim San in Helen Foster Snow’s remarkable Song of Ariran:

Nearly all the friends and comrades of my youth are dead, hundreds of them… Their warm revolutionary blood flowed proudly into the soil of Korea, Manchuria, Siberia, Japan, China. They failed in the immediate thing, but history keeps a fine accounting. A man’s name and his brief dream may be buried with his bones, but nothing that he has ever done or failed to do is lost in the final balance of forces.[1]

In such a framework, the retreats suffered by our movement should be considered as part of an inevitable ebb and flow of a complex trajectory that could take hundreds of years but which nonetheless has an inexorable historical materialist tide. As Deng Xiaoping observed in 1992, commenting on the collapse of the Soviet Union: “Feudal society replaced slave society, capitalism supplanted feudalism, and, after a long time, socialism will necessarily supersede capitalism. This is an irreversible general trend of historical development, but the road has many twists and turns… Some countries have suffered major setbacks, and socialism appears to have been weakened. But the people have been tempered by the setbacks and have drawn lessons from them, and that will make socialism develop in a healthier direction.”[2]

The transition process is complicated by the fact that capitalism and socialism do not exist independently of one another, but rather constitute a unity of opposites, one constantly acting on and transforming the other. Lauesen writes for example that “the way capitalism works today is a product of the Russian Revolution and Soviet industrialisation, the anti-colonial uprisings in the Third World, the 1968 uprising, and the current Chinese development of socialism.” This view is shared with the late Egyptian Marxist Samir Amin, who wrote that “the long transition of world capitalism to world socialism is defined by the internal conflict of all the societies in the system between the trends and forces of the reproduction of capitalist relations and the (anti-systemic) trends and forces, whose logic has other aspirations – those, precisely, that can be defined as socialism”.[3]

Capitalism is running out of road

Marx and Engels thought that capitalism’s contradictions and its tendency towards crisis would condemn it to a relatively brief existence. Lauesen cites Engels in 1847, writing that the bourgeoisie “will at most win a few years of troubled enjoyment, only to then be immediately overthrown… You shall be allowed to rule for a short time… but do not forget that ‘the hangman stands at the door’”. (p54)

A hundred and seventy-eight years hence, it has to be admitted that capitalism has shown itself to be remarkably adaptive, “finding new escape routes from its problems” (p22) in the form of new technologies, colonial and imperial expansion, war, repression, cultural hegemony, and the provision of “bread and circuses” to a privileged layer of the working class.

However, while problems can be swept under the carpet, they can’t remain there permanently. Neoliberal globalisation gave the US an additional four decades of hegemony starting in the 1970s, but Lauesen considers that capitalism is running out of options for mitigating its contradictions.

I do not believe that capitalism will survive this century. Capitalism reached its zenith around 2000. It is still dominant, but is in decline, reflected in the turn from neoliberal economic globalisation towards military defence of a US hegemony that is no longer economically based. The decline of US hegemony and the rise of China as a driver for a more multipolar world system can lead to a geopolitical balance, in which social movements and nations in the global South can move in the direction of socialism. (p10)

China’s emergence is central to Lauesen’s analysis. While the US-led capitalist world system is in decline, China – led by a Communist Party and following a hybrid economic model with public ownership and planning at its core – is increasing in strength, prosperity and influence. China is “the leading industrial producer and the biggest actor in the world market”, as well as being “the driving force behind the effort to establish a multipolar world-system.” (p10)

Furthermore, China’s rise is not reliant on hegemonism. As President Xi Jinping has pointedly remarked: China will “neither tread the old path of colonisation and plunder, nor the crooked path taken by some countries to seek hegemony once they grow strong.”[4] Because the capitalist class in China is not the ruling class, it is not able to define the country’s foreign policy. Li Zhongjin and David Kotz have pointed out, any drive towards hegemonism by China’s capitalists is restrained by a CPC government which “has no need to aim for imperial domination to achieve its economic aims”, and “the Chinese capitalist class lacks the power to compel the CPC to seek imperial domination.”[5]

Lauesen considers that the failure of the forces of global socialism to win a final victory over capitalism is rooted primarily in the fact that capitalism has still found ways to expand; it has still until very recently retained the edge in terms of driving human progress forward. This is changing. As Deng Xiaoping commented in 1984, “the superiority of the socialist system is demonstrated, in the final analysis, by faster and greater development of those forces than under the capitalist system”.[6] The extraordinary success of DeepSeek’s R1 model; China’s leading role in renewable energy and green transport; its charting of new territory in telecommunications, advanced industry, space exploration, medical science and more all indicate that humanity is reaching a turning point.

Understanding China

One of the most significant aspects of The Long Transition is its serious attempt to understand and explain contemporary China, and in particular to assess the results – and perhaps necessity – of the Reform and Opening Up process introduced in 1978, gradually introducing market mechanisms to the economy, allowing private ownership of capital, encouraging investment from abroad, and integrating China into the global economy.

Lauesen’s writing betrays a certain ambivalence on this topic, and it’s not difficult to imagine that, given his long adherence to a variant of Cultural Revolution-era Maoism, it has been no easy task coming to terms with Deng Xiaoping Theory. And yet, Lauesen’s methodology adheres to Mao Zedong’s observation that “the only yardstick of truth is the revolutionary practice of millions of people”.[7] As such, he recognises that China’s extraordinary rise constitutes “an epochal change in the world-system. China was able, for the first time in two hundred years, to break the polarising dynamic of capitalism between the West and the rest of the world.” (p256)

Lauesen also recognises that this success would likely not have been possible without the introduction of market reforms and integration into the global economy from the late 1970s onwards. Marx writes that “the development of the productive forces of social labour is capital’s historic mission and justification”.[8] China’s leadership recognised that capital could still perform that historic mission in a socialist country, under the leadership and guidance of the Communist Party. Lauesen views this as necessary, in a context where “actually existing socialism” in both Soviet and Chinese flavours had been as yet unable “to break the power of the global capitalist market, which blocked the road to the development of socialism”. (p221)

In a capitalist-dominated world, without a sufficiently developed economic base, China had to become part of the world economy. It had to build up its productive forces under conditions which would almost certainly be a threat to the hard-won political preconditions, since capitalist norms and values would penetrate society… It could not continue the development of its productive forces without investments and trading with capitalist countries. It needed to begin the transfer of technology from the imperial countries. (p226)

Interestingly, Lauesen considers that the concept of ‘Socialism with Chinese Characteristics’ is not a post-Mao development; that China’s economic reform was not a manifestation of Mao Zedong and his supporters losing the two-line struggle with so-called capitalist roaders. Rather, Mao himself “was part of this new strategy, shifting the course from port to starboard to avoid sailing too close to the wind of the looming storm of global capitalism”. (p221)

In this analysis, the Third Industrial Revolution – the rise of electronics, telecommunications, automation and computers, combined with the massive expansion of globalised production chains enabled by containerisation – gave a new lease of life to capitalism and affected the balance of power in the global class struggle. “Revolutions erupted in Cuba, Algeria, Vietnam, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Nicaragua, and so on, but despite their socialist aspirations, they hardly left the ground concerning the construction of socialism. Therefore, it was not only the Cultural Revolution that lost its steam through the 1970s, it was revolutionary movements all over the world. This indicates that there was a deeper transformation occurring in world capitalism, which was reflected in global class struggles.” (p218)

China needed to rapidly develop its productive forces – “not only to eradicate poverty in China itself, but also because it is necessary to possess the most developed technology to break the dominance of capitalism, and thus promote a global transformation towards socialism” (p272). And this dynamic is first detected not in Deng’s speech at the third plenary session of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in December 1978, but in Richard Nixon’s meeting with Mao in Beijing in February 1972, and China’s acquisition of various industrial facilities from the West in the following years.

Bringing the story up to the present, Lauesen states that “a socialist-oriented China will be of great importance for a transition towards global socialism”, in particular because it “will create possibilities for anti-capitalist struggles within the remaining capitalist world system”. As such, “the importance of socialist-oriented development in China can hardly be overestimated. It can tip the global balance of power decisively in favour of a socialist world order” (p276). This is consistent with the great Italian Marxist philosopher Domenico Losurdo: “Thanks to the prodigious economic and technological development of China, defined as the most important event of the last five hundred years, the Columbian era has come to an end”.[9]

Global united front

The capitalist system is increasingly becoming a hindrance to human progress, and a threat to human survival, but a socialist future is not, of course, guaranteed. It was 110 years ago that the heroic Polish-German revolutionary and theoretician Rosa Luxemburg popularised the idea that humanity faced a stark choice: between socialism and barbarism. But now as then, barbarism is still on the table, and in this era of existential threats to humanity – climate change, pandemics, antimicrobial resistance, nuclear warfare, the dangers posed by unrestrained and unscrupulous use of artificial intelligence – its possible dimensions are all too visible.

Objective factors increasingly favour the global movement for socialism, but the subjective factors have to be mobilised as well. Lauesen writes: “Capitalism can collapse in a brutal, chaotic endgame of wars and natural disasters. To avoid this is our task; and to accomplish that task, we must fulfil the transition to socialism. To do this, we need to learn from the past and mobilise, organise, and develop a strategy for future struggles.” (p2)

In Lauesen’s view, the left in the Global North will not be the driving force in the transition toward global socialism. But this doesn’t mean that the left should simply maintain a humdrum existence fighting for better pay and conditions. “It is not enough to wait for the proletariat of the Global South to create a revolutionary situation in our part of the world”. (p359)

Rather, Marxists in the West must urgently adopt an internationalist perspective and help construct a global united front composed of the socialist countries, the national liberation movements, the anti-imperialist forces of the Global South, and the progressive forces in the advanced capitalist countries. After all, “if reforms in the Global North are not accompanied by the deconstruction of imperialism, then they are not a step forward — they are parasitic”. (p353)

Lauesen urges his readers to make a permanent break with social chauvinism; to make a permanent break with the arrogant Western Marxism described by Losurdo, which rejects the leadership and the lessons of actually existing socialism; to support the Global South’s struggle against imperialism; to support those countries and movements developing socialism; to oppose wars; and to “make sure that the North is no safe ‘hinterland’ for imperialism, which means struggle against right-wing national chauvinism, racism, and imperialist political and military intervention”. (p359)

The appeal from the Baku Congress of the Peoples of the East, held 125 years ago, urges the Western working classes: “You cannot free yourselves without helping us in our struggle for liberation. The wealth of our countries is, in the hands of the capitalists, a means of enslaving you.”[10] Lauesen calls on us to take up this challenge anew.

In a relatively long book, dealing with difficult and controversial topics, there is inevitably no lack of things to disagree with. Nonetheless, The Long Transition Towards Socialism and the End of Capitalism is a richly rewarding and important read.


[1]                  Chang Chi-rak and Nym Wales. Song of Ariran: A Korean Communist in the Chinese Revolution. San Francisco: Ramparts Press, 1972, p216

[2]                 Deng Xiaoping 1992, Excerpts From Talks Given In Wuchang, Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Shanghai, Marxist Internet Archive. https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/deng-xiaoping/1992/179.htm

[3]                 Samir Amin. Global History: A View from the South. Cape Town, South Africa : Dakar, Senegal : Bangalore, India: Pambazuka Press, 2011, p185

[4]                 Xi Jinping 2023, Full text of Xi Jinping’s keynote address at the CPC in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-level Meeting, Xinhua. https://english.news.cn/20230316/46287ba021164317ab578b18b447a0af/c.html

[5]                 Li Zhongjin and David Kotz 2020, Is China Imperialist? Economy, State, and Insertion in the Global System, American Economic Association. https://www.aeaweb.org/conference/2021/preliminary/paper/e4D3fNd3

[6]                 Deng Xiaoping 1984, Building a Socialism With a Specifically Chinese Character, Marxist Internet Archive. https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/deng-xiaoping/1984/36.htm

[7]                 Mao Zedong 1940 On New Democracy, Marxist Internet Archive. https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/selected-works/volume-2/mswv2_26.htm

[8]                 Karl Marx. Capital: A Critique of Political Economy. V. 3: Penguin Classics. London, 1981, p368

[9]                 Domenico Losurdo. Western Marxism: How It Was Born, How It Died, How It Can Be Reborn (ed. Gabriel Rockhill). Monthly Review Press, 2024, p227

[10]               Baku Congress of the Peoples of the East: Appeal from the Congress (1920), Marxist Internet Archive. https://www.marxists.org/history/international/comintern/baku/to-workers.htm

Tu Youyou, Ho Chi Minh, Mao Zedong and the struggle against malaria

April 25 is marked each year as World Malaria Day. Marking this occasion, the US publication Struggle/La Lucha carried a brief article by Stephen Millies revisiting the inspiring story of Chinese woman scientist Tu Youyou, who, starting in 1967, led more than 500 researchers to develop a malaria treatment. The project was begun to assist Vietnam in its war against US aggression, but it has gone on to save millions of lives all over the world, especially in the Global South.

Mosquitoes were infecting Vietnamese soldiers marching down what the corporate media called the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Older remedies like chloroquine were not as effective as they once were. The Vietnamese communist leader Ho Chi Minh asked the People’s Republic of China for help. Ho’s comrade, Mao Zedong, responded by setting up Project 523 to find a new and better cure. A plant called sweet wormwood, mentioned in a 1,600-year-old Chinese medical text, became the focus of attention. Tu Youyou helped develop an extraction method that led to the discovery of the anti-malaria drug Artemisinin in 1972. Tu Youyou was finally awarded a Nobel Prize for her work in 2015.

Millies comments: “Helping Vietnam was the solidarity given by the other socialist countries, including the then-existing Soviet Union, China, Cuba, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. Part of that solidarity was the work of Tu Youyou and her fellow scientists in finding new cures for malaria.”

Meanwhile, on the same day, a Ugandan health official said China is a key partner in helping the East African country eliminate the deadly disease by 2030.

Jimmy Opigo, head of the National Malaria Control Division at the Ministry of Health, told Xinhua in a recent interview that Uganda is eager to learn from a country whose relentless efforts have reduced annual malaria infections from about 30 million in the 1940s to zero in 2017. In 2021, the World Health Organisation (WHO) officially declared China malaria-free, making it the 40th country in the world to have eliminated malaria.

Opigo said that over the years, China has supported Uganda in fighting the disease, which kills between 70,000 and 100,000 people in the East African country annually, with pregnant women and children most affected. He added that, drawing from China’s experience, quick case detection, investigation and a surveillance system are critical in fighting the disease

“We appreciate the long-standing bilateral relationship between Uganda and China, which has been in several fields, including trade, technology, manufacturing, agriculture, and medicine, and we are now developing one in malaria elimination,” Opigo said. “Uganda is working with China for the elimination of malaria.”

The following articles were originally published by Struggle/La Lucha and the Xinhua News Agency.

Tu Youyou, Ho Chi Minh, Mao Zedong and the struggle against malaria

Caused by a parasite which is spread by infected mosquitoes, malaria has killed billions during thousands of years of human history. Just in the last century, an estimated 150 to 300 million people died from the disease.

While smallpox, cholera, polio and the plague have been beaten back, malaria and tuberculosis continue to kill hundreds of thousands of people annually. In 2023, an estimated 597,000 people died from malaria. Ninety-five percent were Africans.

Continue reading Tu Youyou, Ho Chi Minh, Mao Zedong and the struggle against malaria

From Bandung to BRICS: the inexorable rise of the Global South

The following is the text of the speech given by our co-editor Keith Bennett to the webinar jointly organised by Friends of Socialist China and the International Manifesto Group on Sunday 27 April, 2025, marking the 70th anniversary of the historic Africa Asia Conference held in the Indonesian city of Bandung.

In his speech, Keith outlined the historic significance of the Bandung Conference, linking it both to its antecedents as well as to the later institutions of the Global South that it inspired, such as the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the BRICS cooperation mechanism.

He pays particular attention to the key role played by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai at the conference and cites Malcolm X, who highlighted the broad unity that Bandung embodied.

We called this meeting to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Bandung Conference and to affirm its continued relevance.

What do I mean by that?

It was a key moment in the evolution and development of the international situation post-World War 2.

It came at the cusp of the anti-imperialist national liberation movement:

  • Just after the liberation of China, itself preceded by the independence of India, Pakistan, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Burma (now Myanmar).
  • When Korea and Indochina were at the forefront of the global diplomatic agenda – this being the year after the 1954 Geneva Conference.
  • Just prior to the great wave of decolonisation in Africa, to begin with the independence of Ghana from British colonial rule, under the leadership of Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah in March 1957, followed by the independence of Guinea from French colonial rule, under the leadership of Ahmed Sekou Toure, in October 1958.
  • And with the world waking up to the full iniquity of the apartheid regime being progressively consolidated – with newly independent India having been the first country to raise the question at the United Nations.

It was against this backdrop that Bandung established a distinct and common Africa Asia identity as a political concept and geopolitical reality.

Of course, there were antecedents, to a great extent related to the international communist movement and to actually existing socialism:

  • The Communist International had convened the Baku Congress of the Peoples of the East in September 1920.
  • In 1927, again at the instigation of the Communist International, delegates including Jawaharlal Nehru of India, Song Qingling (Mme. Sun Yat-Sen) from China, and indeed Fenner Brockway from Britain’s Independent Labour Party, had gathered in Brussels to found the League Against Imperialism.
  • And in 1945, Manchester hosted the fifth Pan African Congress, attended by three future African heads of state – Kwame Nkrumah, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya and Hastings Banda of Malawi – along with the African-American scholar and revolutionary Dr. WEB Du Bois, who had attended the first congress in Paris in 1919, and Amy Ashwood Garvey, the widow of Marcus Garvey.

But Bandung occurred at a qualitatively different historical moment in that it was an initiative of independent sovereign states – and in the main of newly independent sovereign states that had just set out on the road of building a new society. They therefore represented what both Indonesian President Sukarno, the host of the conference, and Korean leader Kim Il Sung referred to as the new emerging forces.

Continue reading From Bandung to BRICS: the inexorable rise of the Global South

Webinar marks 70th anniversary of the Bandung Conference

Seventy years ago, the Bandung Conference brought together 29 Asian and African countries to discuss the common challenges facing the Third World. The conference was a milestone in the global struggle against colonialism and imperialism, and laid the foundations for the Non-Aligned Movement.

Friends of Socialist China and the International Manifesto Group co-organised a webinar on Sunday 27 April 2025 to address the legacy of Bandung and its relevance to the contemporary world. Speakers at the event were:

  • Radhika Desai (Convenor, International Manifesto Group)
  • Ben Norton (Founder and editor, Geopolitical Economy Report)
  • Tings Chak (Asia Coordinator, Tricontinental Institute)
  • Jenny Clegg (Author, China’s Global Strategy: Towards a Multipolar World)
  • Isaac Saney (Cuba and Black studies specialist, Dalhousie University)
  • Keith Bennett (Co-editor, Friends of Socialist China)
  • Mushahid Hussain (Pakistani senator, Chairman of the China-Pakistan Institute)

The presentations were followed by a lively and interesting discussion. The video of the webinar is embedded below.