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Editor's note: CGTN's First Voice provides instant commentary on breaking stories. The column clarifies emerging issues and better defines the news agenda, offering a Chinese perspective on the latest global events.
The phone call on November 24th between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump carries extraordinary symbolic and practical importance. Coming on the heels of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's reckless statements about Taiwan, the conversation is a timely and crucial reaffirmation of the foundational principles that have underpinned global peace and prosperity for decades.
The phone call, first and foremost, is a straight-to-the-point clarification on the Taiwan question amid Takaichi's erroneous remarks.
As President Xi Jinping said in the phone call, Taiwan's return to China is an integral part of the post-war international order. This position is rooted in international law and diplomatic agreements, most notably the Cairo Declaration of 1943 and the Potsdam Proclamation of 1945, which explicitly stipulated the return of territories stolen by Japan, including Taiwan and the Penghu Islands, to China.
This legal arrangement was universally recognized by the international community and formed a key part of the post-war order. For decades, the vast majority of countries, including the United States, have built their relations with China upon this understanding, formalized in the one-China principle. The phone call between the two leaders effectively reinforced this long-standing framework, making it clear that attempts to distort history and law, as seen in Takaichi's remarks, are irresponsible and dangerously destabilizing, and constitute a direct assault on the very bedrock of the post-war settlement.
Secondly, President Trump's words that China was a big part of the victory of WWII and that the United States understands how important the Taiwan question is to China are equally significant. They represent a substantial and welcome positive sign.
The Taiwan question lies at the very core of China's national interests, and its proper handling is the most important and sensitive issue at the heart of China-U.S. relations. History has repeatedly shown that when the Taiwan question is managed with wisdom and restraint, both nations and the wider region benefit from stability and cooperation. When it is mishandled, it risks direct confrontation.
President Trump's statement signals an understanding that managing the Taiwan question effectively is of paramount importance to the broader health of the international system. A peaceful cross-Straits relationship is a cornerstone not only of the healthy development of China-U.S. relations but also of Asia's stability.
Lastly, beyond the immediate region, the conversation between Chinese and U.S. Presidents has a resonance for all peace-loving peoples and nations around the globe.
Takaichi's remarks reveal a far more insidious threat that should alarm every peace-loving nation and individual: the specter of resurgent militarism. Japan's history in the first half of the 20th century is a stark lesson in how militaristic expansionism led to untold suffering across Asia and a catastrophic world war. When a Japanese leader makes statements that challenge the post-war territorial settlement, it is not an isolated political comment. It is a disturbing echo of a past the world vowed never to repeat. It represents a flirtation with the very ideologies that the global community collectively defeated and condemned.
The post-WWII international order was painstakingly constructed precisely to prevent the recurrence of past tragedies. It established norms of sovereignty, non-aggression, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. All nations and peoples who cherish peace have an obligation to be vigilant against the danger of militarism. We must join hands to unequivocally oppose any attempts that seek to glorify militarism, rewrite the history of aggression, or undermine the sovereignty of nations.
In the end, protecting the post-WWII global order is not about taking sides in a bilateral dispute; it is about defending the fundamental principles on which our collective security, economic growth, and peaceful coexistence have thrived for generations. To protect this order is to protect our shared future.
