China-Soviet 4: Lenin Declared Return of All the Territories Seized by the Tsarist Russia to China for Free! Why did the This Promise Not Occur?

Chen Airi, Professor of Russia-Soviet History at East China University

September 2024

The Karakhan Declaration was particularly important in modern Chinese history. It was issued by Soviet representative Karakhan on July 25, 1919, stating that the Soviet government would return the Chinese territory and rights seized by the Tsarist Russia to China free of charge. This declaration caused a great response in China at the time and was seen as a major breakthrough in Sino-Soviet relations. However, although the content of this declaration was quite exciting, the Soviet Union did not fulfill all of its promises in the end. This article will discuss the background, content and impact of this Declaration, and analyze the reasons why the Soviet Union did not implement this declaration.

I. Background of the Karakhan Declaration

At the beginning of the 20th century, China was in a period of internal and external difficulties and turbulence. After the Xinhai Revolution in 1911, the Republic of China was established, but the internal political situation was turbulent, with warlords ruling all over the country. At this time, the invasion and control of China by Western powers and Japan became increasingly serious. In particular, Tsarist Russia, with the help of a series of unequal treaties in the 19th century, seized a lot of territory and rights from China, such as Outer Manchuria and Outer Northwest China.

In 1917, the October Revolution broke out in Russia. The Bolshevik Party overthrew the Tsarist regime and subsequently established the Soviet government. The new government advocated building equal relations with all countries in the world, especially those oppressed nations. In this situation, the Karakhan Declaration appeared, which promised to abolish the unequal treaties signed between Tsarist Russia and China and return the plundered territories and privileges to China. Firstly, the Karakhan Declaration emphasized the importance of abolishing unequal treaties. In the declaration, the Soviet government solemnly stated that it would abolish all unequal treaties signed between the Tsarist Russia and China, such as the Treaty of Aihui, the Treaty of Beijing, and the Sino-Russian Treaty of the Northwest Boundary. This behavior reflects the Soviet government’s respect for international law and the principle of sovereign equality, and laid the foundation for the normalization of Sino-Soviet relations. Secondly, the Karakhan Declaration promised to return all territories and rights. The Soviet government declared that it would unconditionally return the territories and privileges taken from China during the Tsarist period, such as the northern part of Sakhalin Island, Vladivostok, and economic interests in railways, mines, banks, etc. This action demonstrated the Soviet government’s kindness and credibility, and laid a solid foundation for the improvement and development of Sino-Soviet relations. The Karakhan Declaration emphasized the need to build equal and mutually beneficial diplomatic and economic relations. The Soviet government expressed its desire to cooperate with China in a friendly manner, hoping to promote the development of bilateral relations on the premise of equality and mutual benefit. This declaration not only demonstrated the Soviet government’s diplomatic wisdom and long-term vision, but also laid a solid foundation for cooperation and exchanges between China and the Soviet Union.

The Karakhan Declaration was an important diplomatic initiative proposed by the Soviet Union to China. Its contents included the abolition of unequal treaties, the return of territories and rights, and the establishment of equal and mutually beneficial diplomatic and economic relations. This declaration gave positive impetus to the development of Sino-Soviet relations and laid a solid foundation for the friendly cooperation between the two countries. The impact of the Karakhan Declaration far exceeded expectations at the time, and had a profound impact on China’s political, diplomatic and social development. Firstly, the Karakhan Declaration caused a great sensation in China. The Chinese government and people welcomed the friendly attitude of the Soviet government and felt that this proved that there was an essential difference between the Soviet Union and Tsarist Russia. This action laid a good foundation for Sino-Soviet relations, and everyone felt that this was a new beginning for peaceful cooperation between the two countries. The Karakhan Declaration had a profound impact on China’s revolutionary movement. After the founding of the Communist Party of China, the CPC quickly established contact with the Soviet Union and received assistance and support from the Soviet Union. The help the Soviet Union provided to the Communist Party of China greatly promoted the progress of the Chinese revolution and made the relationship between the CPC and the Soviet Union closer. This strongly supported the growth of the Communist Party of China and the victory of the Chinese revolution and accelerated the process of social change in China. However, although this Declaration had a positive effect, the Soviet Union ultimately failed to fulfill all of its promises. This situation not only disappointed the Chinese government and people, but also had a long-term negative impact on Sino-Soviet relations. China expected the Soviet Union to do this and that, but it was not realized. This posed challenges and difficulties to the later future development of Sino-Soviet relations. This inevitably raised questions about the Soviet Union’s true thoughts and policies, and also has a certain impact on Chinese society and politics. The impact of the Karakhan Declaration on China was profound, with both good and bad aspects. However, it was an important node in the history of Sino-Soviet relations and has great historical significance, leaving valuable experience and lessons for the interaction and cooperation between China and the Soviet Union.

Reasons why the Soviet Union failed to implement the Karakhan Declaration

There are many reasons why the Soviet Union did not fully implement the Karakhan Declaration, including complex internal and external situations, as well as limitations brought about by history and reality.

1. The domestic political environment of Soviet Union had changed

In the 1920s, the political situation in the Soviet Union underwent a major change. After Lenin’s death, power gradually fell into the hands of Stalin, and starting from 1928, he began to implement the Five-Year Plan to fully develop domestic economic construction and industrialization. In order for these plans to be implemented smoothly, the Soviet Union had to consolidate domestic stability and security and could not give in on border issues, otherwise it would cause domestic dissatisfaction and lead to unrest.

2. Sino-Soviet relations were complicated

Although the Karakhan Declaration talked about the abolition of unequal treaties, China and the Soviet Union encountered many difficulties in actual implementation. Firstly, China was under the rule of the Beiyang Warlords government at that time. The political situation was extremely unstable, with many separate warlords ruling everywhere and the central government’s control was very limited. This political turmoil and the dispersion of power made it impossible for the Chinese government to reach a consensus and to conduct effective and sustained diplomatic negotiations with the Soviet Union. Moreover, there were obvious differences in China’s internal policies towards the Soviet Union. Some warlords and politicians did not trust the Soviet Union’s intentions and felt that the Soviet Union’s promises were just political propaganda and there will be no actual action. Warlords and politicians were afraid that the Soviet Union’s abolition of unequal treaties might have other political or military intentions. Especially in the context of the international communist movement, they were afraid that the Soviet Union would use the power of the Chinese Communist Party to interfere in China’s internal affairs. Therefore, these conservative forces were very negative about cooperating with the Soviet Union, making it more difficult to implement the Karakhan Declaration. In addition, there were also problems with the actual implementation within the Soviet Union. Although the Karakhan Declaration showed that the Soviet Union had good intentions in theory, the complex domestic political situation in the Soviet Union, coupled with considerations for the Far East strategy, led to many difficulties in its specific implementation. The Soviet Union had key strategic interests in the Far East and did not want to easily lose its influence and control in this region. Therefore, in actual operation, the Soviet Union was unclear about the specific steps and timetable for returning the territory and rights, which made the Chinese side doubt Soviet sincerity. Although the Karakhan Declaration sent a friendly signal in diplomacy, in actual operation, due to the complex political situation between China and the Soviet Union, internal disagreements, and conflicts of strategic interests, it was particularly difficult to implement the declaration.

This not only hindered the further development of Sino-Soviet relations, but also made many of the promises made in the Karakhan Declaration impossible to achieve in practice, ultimately having a profound impact on the long-term development of relations between the two countries. After the publication of the Karakhan Declaration, the international situation changed dramatically. In the 1920s, the hostility of Western powers such as Britain, France and the United States towards the Soviet Union continued to deepen, and the Soviet Union encountered severe diplomatic and military pressure. In order to protect its own security and interests, the Soviet Union had no choice but to make changes in its foreign policy and compromise and negotiate with Western powers. Under such circumstances, the Soviet Union could not fulfill all the promises made in the Karakhan Declaration for fear of affecting its relations with Western countries.

During the Tsarist Russia era, the Soviet Union took away a lot of economic benefits from China, such as railways, mines, banks, etc., which were very important for the development of the Soviet economy. When the Soviet government began the Five-Year Plan (1928) and full scale industrialization, it needed a lot of resources and funds to support it, so Soviets did not want to give up these key economic benefits easily. In addition, the Soviet Union’s strategic position in the Far East was quite important. If these regions are abandoned, it will have a negative impact on the Soviet Union’s national security.

In order to deal with the threat posed by Japan, the Soviet Union had to strengthen its military and economic strength in the Far East, so it did not want to compromise on the issue of territory. Due to the contradictions and conflicts between the Soviet Union and Japan, the Soviet Union was very cautious in Sino-Japanese relations. It did not want Sino-Soviet relations to become tense due to territorial issues, which would in turn affect its strategic arrangements in the Far East.

The Karakhan Declaration was an important diplomatic action of the Soviet government in China’s modern history, which once brought hope and opportunities to the development of Sino-Soviet relations. However, the Soviet Union ultimately failed to fully fulfill its promise, resulting in some ups and downs and difficulties in the subsequent development of Sino-Soviet relations. There are many reasons why the Soviet Union did not implement the Karakhan Declaration, such as the change in the domestic political environment, the complexity of Sino-Soviet relations, the changes in the international environment, economic interests that had to be considered, and the complexity of Sino-Japanese relations. Although the Soviet Union did not fully implement the Karakhan Declaration, this event still has great historical significance. It reflects an attempt by the Soviet Union in foreign policy after the end of the October Revolution and shows the flexibility and complexity of the Soviet government in handling international relations. At the same time, the Karakhan Declaration brought valuable experience and lessons to China’s revolutionary movement and the development of Sino-Soviet relations.

Today, as the international situation has changed and China-Russia relations continue to develop, we can draw valuable lessons from the historical event of the Karakhan Declaration, thereby can further promote cooperation and development between China and Russia in various fields. If China and Russia want to jointly respond to global challenges and add more wisdom and strength to world peace and development, this can only be done on the premise of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit.