UN envoy calls for correct understanding of history

China's top envoy to the United Nations has stressed the country's pivotal role in the global victory over fascism and its commitment to safeguarding peace and promoting international collaboration.

"As the primary eastern theater of the war, China endured enormous casualties, exceeding 35 million," Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, said on Wednesday at the UN General Assembly's special solemn meeting commemorating all victims of World War II.

"By holding back the main forces of Japanese militarism, China not only secured its own survival and national salvation, but also provided strong support to the resistance forces in Europe and the Pacific, making an indelible contribution to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War."

Fu said 80 years later, the world has entered a period of turbulence and change, "with unilateralism on the rise and bullying running rampant".

"We must seize the opportunity presented by the 80th anniversary of the victory of World War II to learn from history, reaffirm our original aspirations and commitments, shoulder the responsibilities of our time, and forge a bright future."

He called for a right view of the history of World War II to be fostered.

"Remembering history is not to perpetrate hatred but to better cherish the present and shape the future. Only with a right view of history can we fulfill the noble ideal enshrined in the UN Charter — to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.

"Any scheme or action seeking to downplay, deny or distort the history of World War II and any rhetoric that glorifies wars of aggression and colonial rule tantamount to a mockery of history and an affront to human conscience … will surely lose the trust of the global community," Fu said.

He emphasized jointly safeguarding the victory of World War II. "We must firmly uphold the UN-centered international system, the international order based on international law, and the rules-based multilateral trading system, and unequivocally say no to all forms of power politics and bullying."

He called for joint upholding of the authority and status of the UN, which has been "instrumental in maintaining world peace and promoting common development".

The UN also needs to keep pace with the times through continuous reform and improvement, he said. The more volatile the global landscape, the greater the need for international solidarity to support the UN's central role in global affairs.

"Certain countries treat the UN as something they can use when it suits them and discard when it doesn't. They willfully withdraw from agreements and organizations, default on contribution payments, and cut funding in an attempt to place their narrow interests over the collective global good," Fu said, adding that such practices are "deeply unpopular and are ultimately doomed to failure".

minluzhang@chinadailyusa.com

?