Take back the ceded territory without default. Jin Yinan
At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, a plan was conceived to solve the problems left over from history, especially in the territorial recovery, for example, after the liberation of Shanghai, the Lend-Lease Treaty of the ** period was not recognized, and the entire Shanghai was successfully recovered.
However, in the case of Hong Kong and Macau, the leaders of the time put it aside to the end, which was the result of deliberation and not disregard. In fact, China has been emphasizing the need to take back Hong Kong in its entirety, a point that has been questioned by British journalists.
In this regard, Professor Jin Yinan gave an explanation, so what did he say specifically?
2. Resist inequality, Hong Kong will eventually return! In the negotiations on the Hong Kong issue, Britain only recognized the Lend-Lease Treaty in the New Territories, emphasizing that Hong Kong Island and other areas were still its territory, but New China did not recognize all unequal treaties.
In the face of Britain's aggressiveness, Deng Gong resolutely refuted and firmly stated: "New China does not recognize all unequal treaties!" Decades later, when asked whether it would be a default to reclaim areas other than the New Territories, Professor Jin Yinan replied in the words of Deng Gong at the time, demonstrating China's strength.
It was precisely this strength that forced Britain to return the whole of Hong Kong, let Hong Kong return to the motherland, and realize the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the motherland.
In the Sino-British negotiations that year, Britain was impressed by the momentum of the defense of the Falklands because it had just won the Falklands, which left a deep impression on the Chinese negotiators. Professor Jin Yinan once analyzed this, pointing out that the victory in the Falklands naval battle gave Britain the feeling of being a huge empire, and thus had greater expectations for the Hong Kong issue.
However, China is not Argentina, and its strength is by no means comparable to that of other countries. At that time, China had a complete navy and missile forces, as well as a superior air force, which forced Britain to consider the cost behind being tough.
Considering its own strength and international image, Britain eventually made a compromise in the negotiations, and China succeeded in reclaiming all of Hong Kong.
2. Say No to Unequal Treaties Although imperialism has become a thing of the past after the end of World War II, there are still countries that try to maintain their hegemony. For example, France intervened in the Vietnam issue, but eventually had to recognize Vietnam's independence.
The United Nations and other international organizations have made it clear that unequal treaties signed during the imperialist period can be abolished. Under these circumstances, many Western countries took the initiative to make their colonies independent, renouncing their status as great powers.
However, Britain was still reluctant to give up some colonies, especially places like Hong Kong that could bring long-term benefits to it. As a result, Britain began to make a fuss about unequal treaties, however, this era has passed, and unequal treaties no longer apply.
In the face of the British cunning tactics, the Chinese representatives did not back down, and finally succeeded in preserving the integrity of Hong Kong's sovereignty. In this regard, Professor Jin Yinan explained that when the Treaty of Nanjing was signed in the mid-19th century, it was the peak of the activities of the great powers, and unequal treaties were an important means of expansion for the great powers.
However, after the two world wars, the world has come to realize that the brutal development of the great powers can only lead to chaos in the world order. The UN Charter clearly stipulates that the territorial and sovereign integrity of all countries must be respected, otherwise it will be aggression, and once the aggression is established, it will become the enemy of the whole world, which is no different from the fascists of the past.
Professor Jin Yinan's explanation clearly shows China's firm position and debunks the imperialist attempts. This forced the British journalist to admit that under the existing framework of the UN Charter, the "Treaty of Nanjing" that Britain forced the Qing to sign was outdated.
Britain had to admit that the advent of the twentieth century marked the end of the era of imperialism. China had the right to refuse to recognize the unequal treaties and succeeded in reclaiming Hong Kong, fulfilling the UN Charter, which soon led to the return of Macau, which was crucial to the integrity of its territory and sovereignty.
This act inspired more countries that had suffered from colonial oppression to bravely say no to past imperialism and regain colonized lands, which gave impetus to the world anti-colonial movement.
Conclusion: Britain tried to maintain its colonial status in Hong Kong's colonial rule, and even tried in vain to recover part of Hong Kong's territory under the Treaty of Nanjing, but China insisted on not recognizing unequal treaties and always upheld national sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Under the premise of abiding by the UN Charter, China has the right to abolish the old unequal treaties, which is of great significance to the global anti-colonial movement and demonstrates China's resolute attitude towards the old colonialism.