On 1st September 2025, Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe Zhou Ding contributed to The Herald, Zimbabwe’s leading daily newspaper, an article titled “Honoring the Past, Shaping the Future: Reflections on Timeless China-Zimbabwe Friendship”.
The article highlights the dual significance of the 80th anniversary of China’s victory in its War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1945-2025) and the 45th anniversary of China-Zimbabwe diplomatic relations (1980-2025), underscoring the profound friendship forged through struggles against colonialism and aggression. Drawing lessons from history, the article advocates aligning the great spirit of China’s War of Resistance with Zimbabwe’s development goals to build a "community with a shared future."
The full text is as follows:
Honoring the Past, Shaping the Future:
Reflections on Timeless China-Zimbabwe Friendship
Zhou Ding, Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe
President Mnangagwa will soon embark on another journey to China — this time to attend events commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.
Scheduled to join China’s V-Day commemorations on September 3, this visit carries doubly profound significance: 2025 also marks the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Zimbabwe, weaving together tributes to our shared historical memory and our flourishing modern partnership.
President Mnangagwa’s presence at the victory commemorations is more than a diplomatic gesture – it is a reaffirmation of the deep, time-honoured bond between our two nations, one forged in the crucible of shared struggles against aggression and oppression.
To grasp its full weight, we must turn to the pivotal moment 80 years ago: September 1945, when the Chinese nation finally claimed victory in its 14-year War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-1945).
This triumph, hard-won through unyielding, blood-stained struggle, marked a historic turning point — the Chinese nation’s shift from decline to rejuvenation. This victory was never merely China’s alone; it resonated across the globe, shaping the course of the World Anti-Fascist War. As the main Eastern battlefield, China paid an unimaginable price: 35 million military and civilian lives lost and hundreds of billions of US dollars in damages.
Yet in that sacrifice, it erected an indelible monument to human justice – pinning down two-thirds of Japan’s fascist forces, buying critical time for the global anti-fascist alliance to launch its strategic counter-offensive.
These contributions, transcending national borders, are etched into the epic of world peace.
History’s echoes travel far, even across the vast oceans separating China and Zimbabwe. While Chinese soldiers and civilians fought valiantly to defend their homeland from wartime ravages, the people of Zimbabwe were waging their own unyielding struggle – against colonial oppression, in pursuit of liberation and national independence.
Our two nations, though geographically distant, found common ground in this shared fight for dignity and sovereignty – a foundation that would grow into unbreakable comradeship.
To this day, many Zimbabwean freedom fighters who trained with Chinese support at Tanzania’s Nachingwea Camp still hum songs like “The Three Main Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention” – a living testament to that comradeship.
Chairman Mao Zedong, who led the Chinese nation’s struggle for independence, once told his African friends, “We are brothers and friends – people who have suffered hardships and we should help each other.”
China turned that promise into action, providing political backing, military training and material aid for Zimbabwe’s quest for sovereign independence and national development. In return, Zimbabwe has stood firmly alongside China on the international stage.
Our friendship, forged in times of hardship, echoes in two ancient stone landmarks – the Great Wall and Great Zimbabwe. Thousands of kilometres apart, both bear the same cultural DNA – resilience and perseverance.
In attending China’s September 3rd V-Day commemorations, President Mnangagwa, who received military training in China over six decades ago, does more than honour China’s pivotal role in the War of Resistance and the broader World Anti-Fascist War.
He revives our common memory: “China and Zimbabwe standing side by side against aggression.” Most importantly, his presence brings to life the core of traditional China-Africa friendship – “historical mutual recognition” – making it a vivid diplomatic symbol of our era. This is part of a larger legacy: just as many African nations stood in spirit with China during its struggles, Zimbabwe today carries forward this “shared destiny.”
We have both fought oppression, so we know first-hand how precious independence is; we have both defended dignity with blood, so we understand the true weight of peace.
China-Zimbabwe friendship has come a long way from its historical roots. No longer confined to solidarity in struggle, it has become a model of “learning from history to drive common development” – a principle China put into practice soon after its War of Resistance victory, using development to strengthen peace.
Today, under frameworks like the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), we are turning our “shared weal and woe” friendship into tangible progress: collaborating on infrastructure construction and value chain extension, digital and energy transformation, education and talent cultivation, cultural and people-to-people exchanges and growing stronger side by side.
Today, our robust fraternal partnership is more vital than ever amid a global landscape marked by challenges and volatility. Unilateralism is on the rise, and historical revisionism spreads noise and confusion. In such times, our shared history becomes our anchor.
We firmly oppose the despicable acts of glorifying aggression or denying past atrocities, and we stand united on platforms like the United Nations – speaking with one voice to advance multilateralism and an international order rooted in “sovereign equality, justice and fairness.”
Standing at this dual milestone – the 80th anniversary of anti-fascist victory and the 45th anniversary of China-Zimbabwe diplomatic ties – the Great Wall of China and the stone structures of the Great Zimbabwe together whisper an eternal truth: we can only safeguard peace if we remember and learn from history; we can only build a brighter future if we stand united and support one another.
The great spirit of China’s War of Resistance does more than guide China’s journey of national rejuvenation – it aligns and merges with Zimbabwe’s drive for development. This spirit has become a spiritual bond, fueling our joint efforts to build a China-Zimbabwe community with a shared future.
Let us take historical memory as our brush and mutual trust as our ink. Together, we will paint a new chapter of China-Zimbabwe friendship on the canvas of the new era. May the sunshine of peace illuminate the path to happiness for our peoples, and may the fruits of our cooperation add greater splendour to the noble cause of human development!