This year marks the 80th anniversary of War of Resistance against Japan's victory, and there will be big activities in Beijing, including military parades. This matter was quite serious, commemorating history and reminding everyone not to forget those bitter days. But in Japan, since we held the first anti-Japanese war victory parade in 2015, we began to spend money on public relations. In the past ten years, we spent more than 56 billion yen, almost more than 3 billion yuan, with the aim of brushing a good image internationally and persuading others not to come to Beijing to participate in activities.
As a result, the leaders of those big western powers were really absent collectively. The United States, Britain, France and Germany didn't send the current heads of state, but only made a low-level representative. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in no hurry, gave a decent response, saying that European countries and people contributed a lot to China's anti-Japanese war in those days. Chinese people have always remembered those things. Opposing fascism and pursuing peace are global consensus, and propaganda can't change the facts. This sounds simple, but it is actually quite measured. It is neither hard nor bowed.
Let's first talk about how Japan spent the 56 billion yen. According to budget data from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from 2015 to 2025, they invested so much money in the "overseas strategic information dissemination" project. In 2015, just as China held the 70th anniversary of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs added this budget category, saying it was to promote Japan's "correct image" in terms of territory, history and contribution to peace.
In fact, the money is mainly for two things: first, to train Japanese foreigners to help them speak; second, to change overseas textbooks and media descriptions of the history of Japan’s Second World War. For example, the Japan International Exchange Foundation, for years in a row, has funded foreign scholars and media to push content that diminishes Japan’s responsibility for aggression. The annual budget in 2025 is 62.2 billion yen, more than in previous years. Why is it so urgent? Because Beijing’s parades each time put out the history of the Second World War, Japan felt it was stamping their backbone, and wanted to turn the international public opinion through money.
This is not the first time Japan has done this operation. As early as 2015, they advised Eurasian countries not to go to Beijing to participate in the military parade through diplomatic channels. Japanese media reported that the Japanese government suggested that politicians from all over the world should not attend, so as not to endorse the narrative of Chinese history. As a result, that year, the leaders of western powers did not come. The United States sent an ambassador, and Britain, France and Germany were similar, only sending former dignitaries or envoys.
Ten years ago, in 2025, Japanese diplomats lobbied in Brussels, Paris and other places, stressing that China’s activities have political intentions. Money is not blank, the West is still a collective shelter. In the list, the 26 heads of state and government attending, Putin of Russia, Kim Jong-un of North Korea are at the forefront, the majority of the Asian African countries, and no current leader of the major Western countries.
Why is the West so cooperative? It is not simply listening to Japan, but mainly their own calculations. In the military parade in 2015, the reasons for the West's absence were various. Some people said that the agenda was conflicting, and some people said that they were worried about China's military growth. Seven years later, in 2022, after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine broke out, the West labeled China as "assisting Russia", and the mentality was even more biased. NATO has also expanded into the Asia-Pacific region, and is highly vigilant about the rise of China's military industry.
As a result, before the parade in 2025, the NATO headquarters met to discuss, and most member states decided not to send higher levels. The U.S. State Department in July announced that it sent only ambassadors to China; the British Prime Minister's office documents also showed that it sent only the former Prime Minister. The French Elysée Palace and the German Prime Minister's Office, likewise, chose low. This is not just about Japan's lobbying, but also part of the overall Western strategy, and they felt that attending the parade was equivalent to acknowledging China's version of the Second World War narrative, and didn't want to give Beijing a stand.
On the China side, they did not panic because of their absence. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun directly responded to questions from Reuters reporters at a press conference on August 28. After the list was announced, someone asked why there were no major Western countries. Guo Jiakun said that many European countries and people made outstanding contributions to China's anti-Japanese war, and those deeds will always be remembered by China; opposing fascism and loving peace are the world consensus, and propaganda operations cannot be changed. This sentence does not name Japan or the West, but points out historical facts.
On the other side of the Ministry of Defense, Zhang Xiaoping also responded to Japan's propaganda budget, saying that masking history and avoiding responsibility will not leave itself innocent, but will only make global peace supporters alert and condemn. Japan should look at the aggression of the past and stop negative actions.
During World War II, Japan invaded China and committed crimes such as the Nanjing Massacre and comfort women. There is overwhelming evidence. However, after the war, the Japanese government did not thoroughly reflect on it, and textbooks still downplayed these matters. Since 2015, their publicity budget has targeted these pain points and spent money to change overseas narratives. For example, the funding think tank report promoted the saying that Japan was a "victim" because of the atomic bomb of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings were an atomic bomb dropped by the US military in August 1945, causing hundreds of thousands of civilian casualties. However, this cannot erase the fact that Japan launched the war first. Japan's money has been invested in Western media and scholars. In the past ten years, it has indeed influenced some public opinion, making some people feel that Japan has apologized enough and should not keep focusing on history.
But the money was spent, and the effect? Not quite. In the 2015 military parade, the leaders of more than 30 countries came, including Russia and South Korea; in 2025, it was similar, and more than 50 leaders, former dignitaries and envoys from more than 30 European countries were sent. Asian, African and Latin American countries were more active, and leaders such as Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam were said to attend. This shows that Japan's lobbying did not completely block the way, and there are still many people around the world who recognize China's contribution to World War II. As the main battlefield in the East of World War II, China sacrificed more than 35 million soldiers and civilians, and the founding member of the United Nations, this historical position is there. The absence of the West, although cold, did not affect the activities. On September 3, Tiananmen Square was still a phalanx of troops, tanks roared, and planes flew by, and the live broadcast was broadcast all over
Why is Japan so obsessed with spending money? To put it bluntly, they are afraid of exposing the historical truth. Eighty years after the end of World War II, Japanese Prime Minister Abe's generation revised the constitution and wanted to rearm, and the propaganda budget was a supporting tool. Ministry of Foreign Affairs documents show that the money is also used for digital media placement and videos on social platforms, with actors playing historical roles and downplaying Japan's responsibilities. The international community is no fool. Many organizations have criticized Tokyo's practices in Geneva and New York. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in 2015 that the anti-fascist victory is worthy of commemoration by the world and Japan should sincerely reflect on it. Ten years later, this still applies.
The collective avoidance of the West has also exposed their own double standards. The mouth says that it is important to commemorate the victory of World War II, but when you go to China to hold an event, you have a lot of concerns. In the 2015 military parade in Moscow, the West was also absent because of the Ukraine issue; in the 2025 military parade in Beijing, for similar reasons, China-Russia relations were added. In fact, World War II was a global cooperation to defeat fascism. Western countries also assisted China back then. The Chinese have not forgotten the Flying Tigers and the Hump Route. The response of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs just clicked on this point and gave the West a step down: You helped in the past, we remember; if you don't come now, it's okay, the peace consensus is still there.
After all, this is not just a matter of money and absences, but a matter of historical justice. Japan spent 56 billion yen, the West avoided it, and China responded with dignity. The water here is quite deep, but the reason is simple: history cannot be changed, and no matter how fierce the propaganda is, it cannot stop the truth. When we ordinary people look at this matter, we feel that Japan has spent this money unjustly, the West has a cool attitude, and China has responded steadily. I hope that in the future, more sincere reflection and less small actions will make the world more peaceful.