80 years on: Why history must guide China-US relations forward

Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

Eighty years have passed since China's victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. The gunpowder smoke from eight decades ago has long since cleared, yet the history still burns bright in our collective memory. Peace is not a natural state of affairs; it must be fought for, defended and cherished by each generation.

We will never forget the heroic deeds of the Chinese and American people fighting shoulder to shoulder against fascism during the World Anti-Fascist War. Today, the relationship between China and the US stands as one of the most consequential bilateral partnerships. How these two powers interact directly determines whether the globe enjoys stability or suffers from discord. Current China-US relations cannot escape present realities, nor can they sidestep the weight of history.

In recent years, the bilateral relationship has faced genuine challenges. Washington has wielded tariff threats against China, imposed technology sanctions and export controls, and deployed traditional geopolitical maneuvering - including military buildups around China's periphery that heighten regional tensions.

Why has it come to this? Much of the answer lies in historical amnesia. Some have forgotten that Americans and Chinese once stood as comrades facing life and death together when peace was treated as a commodity to be traded for so-called strategic advantage.

Eighty years on, we still remember the Flying Tigers battling Japanese forces in the Chinese skies, and Chinese civilians risking their lives to rescue downed American pilots. On Myanmar's battlefields, the Chinese Expeditionary Force fought alongside US troops - young men from both nations giving their lives together. These lines were not just in textbooks; they represented real bodies of soldiers and the genuine separations between life and death.

A simple shared goal - defeating aggressors so children could sleep safely - united peoples separated by vast oceans. Such friendship deserves preservation. It wasn't built on slogans but forged in blood and tears into genuine trust.

This bond served as the wellspring for bilateral relations then, as it should today, and must continue tomorrow.

However, after the war's end, the US pursued selfish interests that proved deeply troubling. Most notably, Washington secretly shielded Japanese war criminals from Unit 731, whose members conducted horrific human experiments in China. These criminals deserved severe punishment; however, to obtain experimental data, the US helped them escape justice. The US leveraged wartime victory to construct strategic footholds, while Japan used American protection to obscure its role as the war's instigator.

How can anyone truly cherish peace without remembering history? Many problems plaguing today's China-US relationship stem largely from serious strategic miscalculations by American policymakers who have forgotten history's lessons.

Today's China differs vastly from the nation of eight decades ago, as does today's US. Both countries have undergone tremendous transformations. What remains unchanged is the longing of both peoples for peace and better lives. This shared aspiration should form the foundation for bilateral development.

Those who cherish peace inevitably keep history close to their hearts.

China consistently emphasizes that both nations must pursue mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation - principles distilled from historical experience. If the two countries could unite against fascism, they can certainly come together to face today's new challenges.

Eighty years ago, China and the US fought side by side for world peace. Today, we should demonstrate the same vision and wisdom in confronting contemporary challenges.

History remains humanity's greatest textbook. Let us read it carefully together - not only for the welfare of Chinese and American peoples, but for the future of all humanity.

Understanding where we came from enables us to navigate where we're going.