摘要：Floral tributes are presented to fallen heroes to mark Martyrs' Dayat Tian'anmen Square in Beijing, China, September 30, 2024. [Ph

Floral tributes are presented to fallen heroes to mark Martyrs' Dayat Tian'anmen Square in Beijing, China, September 30, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

By Song Zhiyong

Eighty years ago, the forces for peace and justice around the world fought shoulder to shoulder as an international united front Against fascism, defeating the aggressors and winning peace for humanity.

World War II (WWII) was an unprecedented calamity in human history. China and the Soviet Union, the principal theaters in Asia and Europe respectively, were the mainstay of the battle against militarism and fascism. Both countries endured immense suffering and made enormous sacrifices. Supporting each other and persevering through an extraordinarily arduous struggle, they achieved final victory and made immense historical contributions to defending human dignity and rebuilding world peace.

As one of the principal founders of the international anti-fascist united front, China has both the standing and the responsibility to demonstrate to the international community that it has always been a founder, builder and staunch defender of the post-war international order.

It is an order established on a firm legal foundation. It was built upon a series of declarations and international legal documents issued by the Allied powers against the Axis powers, which together laid out the basic framework of the post-war system.

The unprecedented devastation of WWII compelled the international community to reflect deeply and recognize that only by creating effective institutions and mechanisms to safeguard peace and promote cooperative development could conflicts and disputes be resolved. Based on this shared consensus, the United Nations and the UN Charter came into being, providing a crucial foundation for the establishment of the post-war international order and peaceful development of human society.

Since its founding, the UN has overcome many difficulties and made important contributions vis-a-vis global issues ranging from maintaining international peace and security to advancing economic and social development. As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China has consistently upheld the postwar international order and defended international fairness and justice.

By participating in major UN operations such as peacekeeping missions, China has fulfilled its responsibilities as a major country and played an important role in safeguarding and supporting the authority and status of the UN.

China not only played an active role during WWII in shaping and establishing the post-war international order, but has also contributed Chinese wisdom to the evolution and development of the order. It proposed the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence – mutual respect for each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, mutual non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful co-existence – which have been widely recognized by the international community.

China firmly defends the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and upholds and practices multilateralism, which has been lauded by the global community. As an advocate of the peaceful resolution of international disputes, the UN is an important guardian of the post-war international order.

The purposes and principles of the UN Charter are by no means outdated. Yet certain major powers have been violating these purposes and principles by pursuing unilateralism and bullying. Such acts run counter to the tide of history, causing grave harm to international peace and security.

As a builder of world peace and a defender of the international order, China will resolutely safeguard the hard-won outcomes of the WWII victory and uphold international fairness and justice. It will support and practice multilateralism and firmly oppose unilateral bullying.

The Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression is an integral part of the World Anti-Fascist War and made a decisive contribution to the ultimate victory in WWII. This historical fact cannot be denied. To correctly view the history of the war, we must uphold the right view of WWII and firmly defend historical justice.

Yet some countries are peddling "historical nihilism," disregarding historical facts, manipulating public discourse, and distorting and tampering with the history of WWII. They are downplaying or even trying to erase China's immense contribution. By sowing divisions in the understanding of history, they are seeking to impose a unilateral self-serving narrative of the war and overturn the principles underpinning the post-war international order. Such behavior is a disregard for historical truth and a challenge to international fairness and justice.

The International Military Tribunal for the Far East in Tokyo, also known as the Tokyo Trials, which lasted two years and seven months from its opening in May 1946 until its verdict in November 1948, exposed the crimes committed by the Japanese aggressors and punished the principal war criminals responsible for the heinous offenses. It upheld the majesty of the law and safeguarded justice for humanity.

The judgment of the Tokyo Trials is the cornerstone of contemporary international law and the international order – unshakable and unquestionable. Yet the Japanese government has adopted an ambiguous, evasive and, at times non-committal, stance toward the history of its war of aggression, diligently avoiding acknowledging its aggressive nature and reflecting a fundamentally flawed view of history.

Regarding the issues left over from the war, the Japanese government has directed or influenced judicial authorities to invoke "state immunity" as a pretext for shirking accountability. The Japanese right-wing forces' denial of the Tokyo Trials is a denial of Japan's history of war of aggression, which is absolutely unacceptable.

Amid profound global changes fraught with uncertainty, the international community must always take history as a mirror, resolutely oppose all forms of fascist and remnants of militarism and be vigilant against dangerous tendencies such as appeasement, extremism, division and confrontation and the undermining of multilateral systems. It must stay firmly committed to the path of peaceful development and mutually beneficial cooperation.

Song Zhiyong, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a professor at the Japan Institute of Nankai University.

来源：中国网一点号