Today, it is necessary to revisit On Protracted War. 今天，有必要重温《论持久战》

By Beijing Daily’s 长安街知事 social media account

Translated by Sinocism.com

The Trump administration announced the imposition of so-called "reciprocal tariffs" on its trading partners, initiating a global trade war that has now been ongoing for nearly a month. The situation has evolved far beyond what the U.S. side had anticipated. Not only did the Chinese government first clearly display its firm stance of being "ready to accompany to the end," but the voices from the international community opposing bullying have also grown louder.

特朗普政府宣布对贸易伙伴征收所谓“对等关税”，挑起全球贸易战已近一个月时间，事态演变大大超出了美方预料。不仅中国政府率先亮出“奉陪到底”的鲜明态度，国际社会的反霸凌声浪也愈加高涨。

Focusing on the chaotic and reckless blows from the U.S. and China's measured responses to each move, the direction of public opinion within China is also changing. Arguments such as the once-popular "China is bound to lose" and "surrender at the speed of light" have faded away. More and more people now recognize that China "knows what it is doing and has cards in hand."

着眼于美方乱拳横出、中国见招拆招的战局，中国国内舆论场的风向也在变化。曾经颇有市场的“中国必败论”“光速投降论”等偃旗息鼓，越来越多的人认识到我们“心中有数、手中有牌”。

At this moment, however, new erroneous viewpoints have also emerged.

当此之时，亦有新的错误观点出现。

One view advocates "quitting while ahead," arguing that China's "hard resistance" cannot be sustained for long. Since the Trump administration now seems to be showing signs of softening, they believe it is time to stop, accept a small loss as a win, quickly compromise and reach an agreement, and avoid entering a protracted stage of strategic stalemate.

一种是“见好就收”，认为中国“硬刚”下去终难持久，如今特朗普政府似有松动，应当点到为止、少输当赢，尽快让步妥协达成协议，避免进入艰苦的战略相持阶段。

Another view holds that "victory is at hand," seeing the U.S.'s chaotic actions and softer rhetoric as evidence that "America is scared." They optimistically predict that the outcome of the trade war has already been decided and that China is about to achieve complete victory.

另一种是“胜利在望”，看到美国出手混乱“口风”软化就认为“美国怕了”，乐观预测贸易战胜负已分，中国马上就能取得彻底胜利。

So, where are these arguments mistaken, and how should we rationally view this round of China-U.S. struggle?

那么，这些论调错在何处，又该如何理性看待中美此轮斗争呢？

The biography Mao Zedong compiled by the Central Committee’s Party Literature Research Office writes: "On Protracted War is filled with dialectical reasoning and materialism throughout, and it holds universal value in terms of the methodology for observing and analyzing phenomena."

中共中央文献研究室编著的《毛泽东传》写道：“《论持久战》这部著作，处处充满了辩证法，充满了唯物主义，在观察事物的方法论意义上有着普遍的价值。”

In May 1938, following the defeat in the Battle of Shanghai, the fall of Xuzhou, and the critical situation in Wuhan, Chinese society was plunged into chaos and clamorous debate. At this crucial moment, Comrade Mao Zedong calmly analyzed the domestic and international situation and, over seven days and nights, wrote the speech On Protracted War. In this article, Comrade Mao did not rely on obscure or difficult concepts to argue his points; rather, he consistently applied dialectical materialism and historical materialism to analyze the War of Resistance Against Japan. He forcefully refuted various erroneous views and helped dispel the fog of confusion, clearing the path for the Chinese people’s victory in the war.

1938年5月，随着淞沪会战失败，徐州失守，武汉危急，中国社会一片混乱、众声喧哗。在这一关键时刻，毛泽东同志冷静分析国内外形势，用7天7夜撰写了《论持久战》演讲稿。在这篇文章中，毛泽东同志没有引用多少晦涩难懂的概念加以推理，通篇文章就是运用辩证唯物主义和历史唯物主义去分析抗日战争，有力批驳了种种错误论调，为中国人民夺取抗日战争胜利廓清了认知迷雾。