Chiang Kai-shek’s foreign policy decisions: the impact of the 1939 Soviet-German hostilities against Poland on Chinese foreign policy strategy

Importance. The purpose of the study is to examine the Chiang Kai-shek government’s concept of using changes in the European environment to secure China’s strategic interests during the period from March 1939 (German occupation of Czechoslovakia) to October 1939 (full control of Poland by the USSR and Germany). The study includes an analysis of the decision-making process of Chiang Kai-shek and members of the government, as well as the impact of changes in the international environment on the implementation of their foreign policy strategy. The study of this topic contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the impact of changes in the European environment in the early period of World War II on the situation in the Far East, as well as a comprehensive analysis of the development, transformation, and influencing factors of China’s relations with other countries during the entire period of the Japan-China War.

Materials and Methods. The study is based on published or introduced into scientific circulation archival materials of China and Russia, as well as memoirs and diaries of key figures of the Chinese government of that period. These sources are analyzed using the methods of historical and documentary analysis.

Results and Discussion. The results of the study indicate that the USSR’s actions towards Poland were the root cause why Chiang Kai-shek’s government was unable to realize the originally defined foreign policy strategy of promptly joining the “anti-aggressive bloc” led by Britain and France in order to quickly establish a link between the Japanese-Chinese War and the European military conflict. The results of the study demonstrate that the key role of the USSR in China’s foreign policy concept of that period, as well as the difficulties in defining relations between the USSR, Great Britain, France and Germany in the current international situation forced Chiang Kai-shek’s government to abandon the initial plans for forced joining the Anglo-French “antiaggressive bloc” in order to avoid provocations to the USSR.

Conclusion. Chiang Kai-shek’s government failed to fully implement the foreign policy strategy conceived at this stage to achieve its goal of “quickly linking the Japan-China war to the European military conflict”, which caused a revival in government circles of the concept of “the need for early recourse to U.S. mediation in the Japan-China War”.