Fissures in the Red Alliance: The Beijing Airport Incident and the Demise of Sino-Japanese Communist Networks

This study examines the postwar transnational communist networks between China and Japan, focusing on the "Beijing Airport Incident" during the Cultural Revolution. This violent clash between Red Guards and factions within the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) marked a critical turning point in the disintegration of these networks. By investigating the causes and progression of the incident, the article investigates the JCP’s internal factional divisions and its complex, long-term relationship with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The study argues that the incident was not coincidental, but the culmination of unresolved Sino-Japanese historical tensions rooted in the long Second World War.

During a period of no formal diplomatic ties between China and Japan, a transnational network forged through semi-official interactions between Chinese and Japanese communists became a key channel of exchange. This network not only extended beyond the realm of inter-party-political relations but also carried hopes of fostering bilateral ties, expanding into areas such as culture, arts, journalism, publishing, and economics. Amid strict restrictions on Chinese travel to Japan, Japanese communists who traveled to China served as crucial intermediaries in these exchanges, with Beijing emerging as the central stage for such interactions. However, the Japanese communist community in Beijing was not a homogeneous entity; rather, it reflected the factional divisions within the JCP itself. Serving as a bridge for communication between the JCP and the CCP, this group’s historically intricate and often contentious relationship with the CCP ultimately catalyzed the eruption of conflicts, with the "Beijing Airport Incident" standing as a pivotal manifestation of these tensions.

This study contributes to the understanding of transnational networks, inter-party dynamics, and the unresolved historical legacies within Sino-Japanese relations. It also offers a fresh perspective on the role of East Asia within the international communist movement in the context of the Cold War.