"The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea is a big school"
——The Enlightenment Brought to Us by the Victory of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea
[Commemorating the 70th Anniversary of the Chinese People’s Volunteers’ Overseas Operation to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea]
Regarding the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, the "War History to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea" published by the Academy of Military Sciences summarized the following features: the first anti-aggression war in the history of New China; the first international local war after the Second World War; New China and the United States An all-round military, political, economic, and diplomatic contest between each other's main rivals; an extremely asymmetrical war between the two sides' economic power and military weapons and equipment.
In this war, our side is the righteous side, and the weak wins the strong to win the final victory.
Seventy years have passed, and we can still get valuable inspiration from it.
The fearless spirit of the whole nation is precious
Today's world, as General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, is facing "major changes unseen in a century."
China is in the historical convergence period of achieving the "two centenary" goals and the critical period of achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The road ahead is still full of risks and tests, and there are even stormy waves.
Under such circumstances, what kind of mental state we take to meet the challenge is the key to the success or failure of our career.
The fearless mental state of the whole nation to fight against the United States and Korea to resist the United States and Aid Korea undoubtedly shows its precious historical value.
This kind of fearless mentality of the whole nation can be summed up in three sentences: bear pressure and cope with challenges; despise difficulties and move forward courageously; unite as one and dare to win.
In short, there is such a strong sense of not being afraid of pressure and not believing in evil.
This is the greatest spiritual legacy left to us by the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea.
As we all know, when the Korean War broke out, China could not compare with the United States in terms of national or military power.
The disparity in strength between the two parties is not calculated by several times, and the difference between the main industrial products is dozens or even hundreds of times.
In 1950, the United States produced 87.72 million tons of steel, and China was 610,000 tons. The United States was nearly 144 times that of China; in 1950, the total industrial and agricultural output value of the United States was $280 billion; China was $10 billion, and the United States was 28 times that of China.
The United States has a complete industrial system and advanced military equipment. China can't even manufacture cars, not to mention airplanes and tanks.
The pros and cons of weapons and equipment are even more obvious. The U.S. military has the highest level of modernization among all militaries in the world. At that time, the ground forces of the U.S. military were fully mechanized and motorized.
In terms of comparable artillery items, our military equipment is also much weaker than the enemy.
In addition to tanks, a division of the US Army has 959 artillery pieces, including 330 artillery pieces over 70 mm. The Volunteer Army has 522 artillery pieces, including 190 artillery pieces over 70 mm.
From the perspective of the international political environment, China is a socialist country that has just won.
At that time, the two camps of socialism and capitalism were facing each other, and the Western world was very anti-communist, and there were not a few countries that held a hostile attitude towards China.
On international occasions, China has almost no say.
Under such circumstances, when national security is threatened and national interests are facing challenges, it is indeed an extremely severe test to be able to cope with and dare to act.
70 years ago, China dared to say "no" to the most powerful America in the world when faced with such historical examination papers, and gave a proud and satisfying answer.
Mao Zedong's sentence in September 1953 when he summarized the victory in the Korean War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was the best interpretation of this answer: "We will not invade anywhere. However, when people invade, we must fight and fight to the end. "
Ahead, under extremely difficult conditions, volunteer soldiers overcome physical limits, fought desperately and fought bloody battles with the enemy.
At the same time, in the rear, the country launched a vigorous "Movement to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea" and established the "Chinese People's General Assembly to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea" to strengthen unified leadership.
A nationwide upsurge of joining the army, participating in wars, and supporting the front line quickly started.
For example, Zhejiang Province had a population of 20 million at that time, and more than 1 million farmers asked to sign up for the army.
All walks of life cut down on food and clothing, and included the enthusiastic donation of aircraft in the patriotic convention.
Linking "one more grain", "one more cotton yarn", and "one more part" to support the anti-US aggression and aid to Korea, so that the two wheels of overseas war and domestic construction can run simultaneously.
Peace is never wishful thinking, let alone a gift from anyone.
Faced with the threats and provocations of the aggressors, shrinking back and forbearance can only fuel their arrogance and make them more unscrupulous.
On issues related to the destiny of the country and nation, we must have a clear-cut stand, a firm stand, tit-for-tat, and fight every inch of it.
Resisting US Aid Korea tells us that only by demonstrating our determination and strength with victory can we defeat the aggressors and win true peace.
Planning for national security and development from a grand strategic perspective
The decision to dispatch troops to resist US aggression and aid Korea was "one of the most difficult decisions Mao Zedong made in his life."
It is difficult for it to compete with the world's number one imperialist country, and what courage and courage is needed; second, what if the war with the United States is brought to China?
The third is to have sufficient reasons and patience to persuade other members of the central decision-making level who disagree.
In fact, these three items are ultimately a question, that is, for this "unexpected war", what kind of security strategy China chooses.
At that time, some people were most worried about sending troops to North Korea on the economic strength of the country and the difficulties they faced. After the war started, how to adjust the plates that have been finalized for various domestic tasks, and the biggest concerns and determination to send troops were the most difficult to make. This is also the case.
This is of course also a security consideration.
The difference between sending troops and not sending troops lies in the degree from which the security and development of the country are judged.
From the beginning, Mao Zedong did not look at the problem from the perspective of China alone. His judgment is: If the entire North Korea is taken by the United States and the North Korean revolutionary force is fundamentally defeated, the aggressors will become more rampant and domestic and international reactionary. Increasing arrogance is not good for the entire East, and it is not good for all parties.
This is the general trend of the world.
Some people might say that it is nothing more than China fulfilling its internationalist obligations.
Fulfilling internationalist obligations is true, but it is not merely an internationalist obligation.
Through the clouds and mist in front of him, Mao Zedong thought deeper and looked farther. He thought about the domestic situation and paid more attention to the international situation.
He said: Even if we go out, even if we are beaten back, it means that we are insiders. If we don't go out, there is no possibility of even entering the game.
Therefore, he made the judgment: China should participate in the war, must participate in the war, the benefits of participating in the war are great, and the damage of not participating in the war is great.
Yang Shangkun later commented on this: "The chairman's decision to make the volunteers enter the dynasty is indeed a very wise and far-sighted decision, and things are as clear as black and white today."
Of course, the general security strategy is not just a sentence or two. It is supported by a series of sub-level and sub-level specific strategic strategies.
For example, after entering the war, how can the United States avoid publicly declaring war with China?
Mao Zedong advocated six words: "It must be able to solve the problem," that is to say, it is necessary to effectively annihilate the US army in North Korea in large numbers, and resolve the North Korean issue by defeating the US army.
Therefore, we must avoid a deadlock between the two armies. In that case, not only will the Korean war be unstable, the United States may openly enter a state of war with China, and the economic construction plan that China has already begun will be destroyed, and it will also cause the bourgeoisie and other people to oppose it. We are dissatisfied.
To annihilate the U.S. forces in large numbers, China must use four times the enemy’s force and twice the enemy’s artillery fire to eliminate the enemy’s active forces.
For another example, during the initial period of time when the Volunteers participated in the war, they "just do nothing but talk" in order to grasp the initiative in work.
Even if a foreign news agency reports on the Chinese People's Volunteers, it will not be reported in China.
For another example, the war has entered a stage where the two sides are fighting and talking, and each other is offensive and defensive. Mao Zedong said, "Talk or fight or fight, and peace or peace", showing a calm and calm attitude of everyone who is always accompanied. .
National security and development strategies involve crisis management issues in international relations.
The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea established a conflict response model and China’s principles for handling international relations throughout it. That is: First, China has a bottom line in its grasp of events, and clearly tells the other side that it must not cross the line. , It won't work.
As the saying goes, it's not unpredictable. Second, China speaks for nothing. It is neither bluffing nor breaking its promise, let alone believing in evil, not afraid of pressure, no matter how difficult it is, it will do what it says.
This is the vivid impression that New China left on people when it entered the world.
Consider modern local wars from all aspects
Said that the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was victorious, the basis of the judgment was that the volunteers drove the US and the "United Nations Army" from the Yalu River to the 37th line, and finally stabilized the front on the 38th line, regained the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang, and restored all the territory of North Korea. With the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, China’s northeast border no longer poses a security threat.
From the volunteers' participation in the war to the signing of the armistice agreement, it fully explained the principle of "stopping war by war."
"Ending war with war" has another meaning, which is to control the scale of the war, avoid the expansion of the war, and confine the war to the peninsula, so that the Korean War will always be a local war.
To achieve this, passive defense cannot be achieved, but by annihilating a large number of the enemy’s vital forces in a war, so that the enemy loses the initiative on the battlefield and deepens the contradictions and chaos within the enemy, so that it is possible to avoid the expansion of war. , Shorten the war time.
The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea has inspired us to fight a local war with a decisive attitude to win on the battlefield. This is the only factor that prevents the expansion and prolongation of the war.
Because only by winning can you control the war, master the initiative on the battlefield, control the situation, and fight as much as you want, as long as you want.
The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was both a local war and an international local war.
The battlefield is in North Korea, but the number of countries participating in the war is second only to the two world wars. The United States is dominated by the armed forces of 16 countries and regions.
The locality of the battlefield and the international nature of the countries participating in the war is an important feature that distinguishes this war from other wars in the history of previous world wars. This feature defines the intricacies of this war, not only military contests, but also economic and political The political and diplomatic contests are in an all-round contest.
Economically, it depends on who can survive the war until the end.
For this reason, formulating an accurate and feasible financial policy is the key to supporting the war.
The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China determined that the war occurred in North Korea as a "neighborly war". Based on this, it determined that the economic work policy is "national defense first, stable market second, and economic construction third."
It is worth noting that "national defense first" is used here instead of "war first", indicating that the country has not transferred to a wartime system and the country's fundamentals have not been disrupted.
The country's financial and material resources first ensure the victory of the war, but economic work has also been placed in an appropriate position and dealt with appropriately.
Both should be used, but the anti-US aid to North Korea is used early, more used, first used, and urgently used; economic construction is used late, less used, later used, and delayed.
There is a master and a second, not a biased one, let alone one loses the other.
The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea did not bring down China. On the contrary, there was a moderate development in economic construction.
The original social changes were completed on schedule. The "First Five-Year Plan" is not only being prepared, but also being implemented, and the process of industrialization has begun.
The "neighborhood war" is also conducive to relying on the state power to mobilize the national power to ensure the victory of the war and to win foreign aid in the name of the country.
Proper handling of the relationship between war and economic development is a very important historical experience for controlling local wars.
Politically and diplomatically, China proceeded from the standpoint of anti-aggression, upheld the justice of the war, and always aimed to isolate and attack the main enemy of the United States.
When the Korean Civil War broke out, the United States moved the Seventh Fleet into the Taiwan Strait, invaded and occupied China’s territory, Taiwan, and directly violated China’s sovereignty. The United States’ armed invasion of North Korea constituted a threat to the security of Northeast China. China was the invaded party and was forced to send troops. Famous.
The United States sent troops to North Korea, and China clearly told the United States not to cross the 38th line. This is China's bottom line.
The United States ignored this and crossed China's bottom line. The Chinese had their words to say. The United States must bear the consequences of China's troop deployment. China occupies the moral high ground.
The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea was a just war against aggression.
In the third battle, the volunteers fought the 38th and 8th parallels. It is also a political account. That is, the United States cannot decide what we do. It is not something you can't do if you can't. At the same time, it is a counterattack to the United States for crossing the 38th and 8th parallels.
As for the verbal battles in the armistice negotiations and the confrontation of public opinion and propaganda, they are both contests on the extension of local wars.
At the negotiating table, sometimes you should take action when it is time to take action, and you dare to face tit-for-tat; sometimes you can grasp the general trend and maintain strategic determination, "Let the wind and waves rise and sit on the fishing boat."
Outside the negotiating table, consolidate and develop relations with countries that have diplomatic relations with New China, and actively seek the sympathy and support of Western countries that have not established diplomatic relations with China or participated in the "United Nations" operation, and concentrated on fighting and isolating the main enemy.
Mao Zedong said: "The War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea is a big school." In this big school, New China learned how to win a modern local war and how to show its image on the international stage.
(Author: Liu new, contemporary Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Department of the Institute of Research Professor)