US Senate Condemns China's WWII "Stolen Valour" Amid Indo-Pacific Tensions

The measure also underscores Japan's position in the Quad — a grouping that includes India — as central to preserving stability amid China's expanding influence in the region.

Senate Resolution 523, submitted by Senator Dan Sullivan and referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, targets what lawmakers describe as Beijing's "exercise in orchestrated propaganda" during its September 3, 2025, ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the end of the war in Asia.

The event, the resolution notes, was attended by leaders from Russia, North Korea, Belarus, Iran, Cuba, and other totalitarian and authoritarian nations that the People's Republic of China seeks to align with its vision of a future world order."

The resolution states that Beijing's claim that Communist Party forces deserve primary credit for defeating Imperial Japan "is a historical revisionist claim that amounts to 'stolen valour' at the expense of the Republic of China, the United States' wartime ally, and the Armed Forces of the United States."

Instead, senators emphasise that "the brunt of the war effort against the then-Empire of Japan in China was borne by the Republic of China and armed forces under the leadership of Chinese Nationalists."

Even before the United States formally entered the war, American pilots formed the American Volunteer Group — the "Flying Tigers" — to support the Nationalist government. After 1941, Lieutenant General Joseph Stilwell, the Allied commander in the China-Burma-India Theatre, worked closely with General Sun Li-jen, described in the resolution as "a graduate of Virginia Military Institute."

Citing a 1939 report by Chou En-lai (Zhou Enlai) to Joseph Stalin, the resolution notes that of roughly one million Chinese casualties in combat with Japan through that period, "only three per cent were Communist forces," underscoring the dominant role of Nationalist troops. Senators further highlight the Soviet Union's late entry into the Pacific conflict on August 9, 1945 — "six days before the de facto cessation of hostilities" — and its attempts to seize territory and materiel "for the benefit of the Chinese Communist Party."

The resolution recounts the sequence of Japan's surrender, from the signing of the Instrument of Surrender aboard the USS Missouri on September 2, 1945 — where the Republic of China was represented by General Hsu Yung-ch'ang and the United States by Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz — to the formal presentation of the document in Nanking on September 9, 1945.

Japan's post-war transformation, senators note, included its 1947 constitution and its security treaties with the United States in 1951 and 1960, which enable "robust cooperation" in protecting peace in Asia.

The text also stresses that Japan is a member of "the Quad and other multilateral dialogues that emphasise the need to preserve freedom of navigation and peace in the Indo-Pacific," placing India firmly in the strategic picture due to its central role in the grouping.

The resolution urges the US government to counter CCP propaganda, calling on the Secretary of State to challenge historical distortions at the United Nations, and exhorting American education officials "to ensure that history regarding allies of the United States during World War II is taught with historical accuracy."

It also recognises the accomplishments of China and the United States, commends the "heroism and altruism" of the Flying Tigers, and supports Taiwan's efforts to deepen diplomatic ties under the TAIPEI Act.

The push to confront China's wartime narrative comes at a time of heightened US–China rivalry, with tensions stretching from technology controls to military activity across the Indo-Pacific. India, the United States, Japan, and Australia have expanded Quad consultations in recent years in response to concerns over Beijing's assertiveness.

- IANS