Exhibition of World Anti-Fascist War victory held at UN headquarters

Wang Min, China's deputy permanent representative to the UN, addresses the opening ceremony of the exhibition "Remembering for Peace".

The Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was part and parcel of the World Anti-Fascist War. The flames of the horrific war started by the fascists engulfed over 80 countries and regions in Asia, Europe, Africa and Oceania, bringing untold suffering to nearly 2 billion People. The Chinese people, who bore the brunt of the war the earliest and for the longest, made the most enormous sacrifices, said Wang.

China was the first country in the world to fight fascist forces when Japanese troops began invading northeast China on Sept. 18, 1931. Japan began its full-scale invasion of China in 1937.

By the end of the Second World War, more than 35 million Chinese soldiers and civilians were killed or wounded. The defeat of the Japanese invaders was a turning point for China after more than a century of humiliation at the hands of foreign aggressors.

"The photos on display here may fade with time, but the indomitable spirit, the exceptional valor, and the unyielding perseverance and resilience thereby shown remain as the most valuable asset of the Chinese nation," said Wang.