2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the global anti-fascist war. At this significant WWII commemorative milestone, some US politicians, in pursuit of geopolitical interests, are collaborating with Japan in historical revisionism.
On March 29, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attended a joint memorial ceremony at Iwo Jima, packaged as a commemoration for "US and Japanese war dead."
During the ceremony, which should have been commemorating a crucial turning point in the Pacific war for the Americans, Hegseth not only became the first US Defense Secretary to attend such a joint memorial but also crossed a historical red line in his speech by saying that “We have not forgotten the honor and the valor of our Japanese and American warriors. Their hallowed memory lives lives on in the bond between our people and our countries.”
Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru emphasized the need to pass on lessons from the war, stating that he "sincerely hopes that the tragic history of war will never be repeated."
At the closing of the ceremony, a 99-year-old US veteran returned a Japanese flag captured during the war.
Afterward, the US Department of Defense published on its official X account, "The bravery of those who fought on Iwo Jima -- American and Japanese alike – endures in history, in sacred ground, and the bonds between our nations. Their valor will never fade."
This blurring of historical positioning triggered strong backlash from American netizens. Comments were filled with questions like: "Whose side does the Defense Secretary represent?" "In the war between the US and Japan, who does he support? Does he dare answer who attacked Pearl Harbor?" "I oppose Hegseth commemorating casualties from both sides at Iwo Jima; only our fallen deserve commemoration." Some netizens directly accused Hegseth's remarks as an insult to their fathers who sacrificed in the Pacific War.
It's worth contemplating that Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has continuously invested resources for decades attempting to transform its WWII narrative from perpetrator to victim. Now it's trying to position itself in the peculiar role of an "Allied victor."
The distinction between justice and injustice in WWII should be clear, as established by the Nuremberg and Tokyo International Military Tribunals. While MacArthur's famous quote "old soldiers never die, they just fade away" still echoes, today's performance by US politicians tarnishes history.
In Japan's pursuit of military normalization, historical revisionism has always been present. As seen in the actions of politicians like Shinzo Abe, certain factions have never abandoned their attempts to revive militarism. Through narratives about atomic bomb victimhood and the Tokyo firebombing, Japan attempts to reshape international perception of its war responsibilities. This strategy has even influenced some Chinese netizens, creating the absurd phenomenon of "academic whitewashing" of historical crimes.
Word choice reflects value judgments. Just as we wouldn't describe armed robbers as "brave," glorifying aggressors similarly violates basic ethics. Following Hegseth's logic, should we praise the "heroic deeds" of the hijackers at the 9/11 memorial site? Such cognitive dissonance breaks the boundaries of civilized society.
Historical lessons remain vivid:
In 1931, the League of Nations' appeasement regarding the "September 18 Incident"
In 1937, Western shipments of strategic materials to Japan, eventually leading to the Pearl Harbor tragedy
In 1939, Japan planning to cut off China's supply routes, with Britain cooperating by closing Hong Kong routes
On December 8, 1941, after the Pearl Harbor attack, America finally entered the war. In the following four years, Japanese were dehumanized in American public opinion, with even Japanese-American citizens confined in internment camps and their properties confiscated
On July 25, 1945, America issued the top-secret order to drop atomic bombs
The current American historical indulgence toward Japan bears striking similarities to pre-war attitudes. If current trends continue, they will ultimately undermine the international legal foundation established after WWII.
Alarmingly, certain Western forces are systematically distorting historical memory - from falsely crediting American troops with liberating Auschwitz to erasing the Soviet Union's battlefield contributions. This historical nihilism has become a pattern. The US military's 2020 tweet claiming sole victory over the Nazis exemplifies this.
WWII historical perspective concerns the baseline of human civilization. The historical positioning of victorious and defeated nations cannot be confused - it's a crucial cornerstone of the post-war international order. If American politicians continue to reverse right and wrong, they will ultimately face the consequences. As netizens sarcastically suggest, why not visit European battlefields to "commend" the Nazi army's "bravery"?
Deep Throat
** The blog article is the sole responsibility of the author and does not represent the position of our company. **
Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt recently sounded the alarm in The New York Times: China is not just catching up in artificial intelligence and technology innovation, it is, in some areas, pulling ahead. Despite US efforts to curb China’s progress through export controls on advanced AI chips, Schmidt argues these moves have only fuelled China’s determination to cultivate talent, build resilient supply chains, and accelerate homegrown innovation.
Schmidt points to a new era: “From DeepSeek to Temu to TikTok, Chinese tech is starting to pull ahead.” The era when China trailed far behind the US is over. American restrictions have, paradoxically, pushed China to double down, producing world-class products and, at times, even leapfrogging the West.
Google Former CEO Eric Schmidt argues in a commentary that China is rapidly catching up to the United States in artificial intelligence and technological innovation. (Image source: X)
A Changed Landscape: From Copycat to Contender
Schmidt’s commentary highlights how technological advances are transforming daily life in China. Electric vehicles speed through city streets; apps offer drone food delivery; and humanoid robots from Unitree Technology have become household names after performing on the Spring Festival Gala, China’s most-watched TV program. These shifts underscore China’s emergence as a peer-and sometimes a leader in fields like AI, robotics, and electric vehicles.
Humanoid robots from Unitree Technology became an overnight sensation after performing a dance and handkerchief-spinning routine on the stage of the Spring Festival Gala.
Schmidt notes, “To win the race for the future of technology, and, by extension, global leadership, the US must discard the belief that it is always ahead.” For years, China lagged behind. In 2007, when Steve Jobs unveiled the first iPhone, only about 10% of China’s population was online, and Alibaba was still years away from its New York IPO. But the pace of change has been staggering. In just over a decade, China has transformed from imitator to innovator, with products that sometimes outpace their Western counterparts.
AI: From Playing Catch-Up to Setting the Pace
When ChatGPT launched in late 2022, a wave of Chinese copycats followed, widely seen as years behind their American rivals. Yet, as with smartphones and EVs, Silicon Valley underestimated China’s capacity to rapidly develop affordable, state-of-the-art alternatives. Today, Chinese AI models are closing the gap. DeepSeek’s V3 large language model, updated in March, now ranks among the world’s best non-reasoning models on some benchmarks.
Schmidt observes, “In a dozen years, China has gone from a copycat nation to a juggernaut with world-class products that have at times leapfrogged those in the West.”
Manufacturing, Robots, and Open AI
Schmidt cites Xiaomi as a case in point: once dismissed as an iPhone copycat, the company delivered 135,000 electric vehicles last year. Meanwhile, Apple abandoned its own EV project after pouring in $10 billion over a decade. China is also racing to deploy robots at scale. In 2023, it installed more industrial robots than all other countries combined and has ambitious plans for mass-producing humanoids.
A key difference is openness. Leading US tech firms develop proprietary AI models and charge for access, partly because training these models costs hundreds of millions of dollars. Chinese AI companies, by contrast, often distribute their models freely for public use, download, and modification. This approach broadens their global influence and makes their technology more accessible to researchers and developers everywhere.
Schmidt’s New York Times op-ed headlined: “DeepSeek. Temu. TikTok. China Tech Is Starting to Pull Ahead.”
The Roots of China’s Tech Momentum
China’s rise is underpinned by decades of investment in STEM education, robust supply chains, and a brutally competitive domestic market that rewards relentless iteration. Apps from Chinese e-commerce giants like Shein and Temu, along with social platforms like RedNote and TikTok, are among the world’s most downloaded. Combined with the popularity of open-source Chinese AI models, it’s easy to envision a future where Chinese apps and AI companions are woven into the fabric of daily life worldwide.
Schmidt warns, “This China-dominated future is already arriving, unless we get our act together.” He urges the US to learn from China’s strengths: sharing more AI technology and research, accelerating innovation, and promoting AI adoption across the economy. He also cautions against underestimating China’s willingness to endure short-term economic pain for long-term technological supremacy.
Sanctions: Fuel for Innovation?
Despite US restrictions on advanced chip exports, China’s recent breakthroughs suggest that sanctions have only spurred local entrepreneurs to train and commercialize AI with renewed vigor. Schmidt concedes, “It’s a hard truth to swallow, but Chinese tech has become better despite constraints, as Chinese entrepreneurs have found creative ways to do more with less.”
The End of US Tech Dominance?
Schmidt closes with a stark warning: “We’re no longer in the era when China is far behind us.” If China’s ability to innovate holds, if its AI companies remain open, and if the country stays on track to claim 45% of global manufacturing by 2030, the next phase of the AI race will be a no-holds-barred contest across every front. America will need every advantage it can muster.
