<Varia>In Pursuit of Peace: Zhou Gengsheng's Internationalism after the World Wars

Abstract

This paper investigates the internationalism of Zhou Gengsheng, an expert in international law in twentieth century China. The Fourteen Points, stated by US President Woodrow Wilson, advocated the abolition of secret diplomacy, reduction of armaments, partial approval of the selfdetermination of nationalities, and the establishment of the League of Nations, initially received unanimous praise in China. However, the praise and expectations of Chinese intellectuals deflated rapidly, as China had difficulty in recovering the Shandong concession from Germany due to the resolute opposition of Japan at the Paris Peace Conference. It is well known that the significant disappointment caused by the conference led to the May Fourth Movement, which followed soon after. Even so, the expectations and support for international cooperation were strong, even after the conference. Some intellectuals thought that China and the rest of the world should proceed to establish a new international order based on international cooperation. Zhou Gengsheng was one of those vocal proponents. He was hopeful that the League of Nations would play a main role in the process of establishing this order. Although he also admitted the potential defects of the League, such as giving priority to the interests of the most powerful members, he firmly believed that internationalism was one of the inevitable trajectories of history, and he still asserted that the League was essential for achieving international cooperation, even after the Mukden Incident. After World War II, Zhou still believed in internationalism and held ardent hope for the United Nations fulfilling such international cooperation.