1971 : Nixon announces visit to communist China
During a live television and radio broadcast, President Richard Nixon
stuns the nation by announcing that he will visit communist China the
following year. The statement marked a dramatic turning point in
U.S.-China relations, as well as a major shift in American foreign
policy.
Nixon was not always so eager to reach out to China. Since the
Communists came to power in China in 1949, Nixon had been one of the
most vociferous critics of American efforts to establish diplomatic
relations with the Chinese. His political reputation was built on
being strongly anti-communist, and he was a major figure in the
post-World War II Red Scare, during which the U.S. government launched
massive investigations into possible communist subversion in America.
By 1971, a number of factors pushed Nixon to reverse his stance on
China. First and foremost was the Vietnam War. Two years after
promising the American people "peace with honor," Nixon was as
entrenched in Vietnam as ever. His national security advisor, Henry
Kissinger, saw a way out: Since China's break with the Soviet Union in
the mid-1960s, the Chinese were desperate for new allies and trade
partners. Kissinger aimed to use the promise of closer relations and
increased trade possibilities with China as a way to put increased
pressure on North Vietnam--a Chinese ally--to reach an acceptable
peace settlement. Also, more importantly in the long run, Kissinger
thought the Chinese might become a powerful ally against the Soviet
Union, America's Cold War enemy. Kissinger called such foreign policy
'realpolitik,' or politics that favored dealing with other powerful
nations in a practical manner rather than on the basis of political
doctrine or ethics.
Nixon undertook his historic "journey for peace" in 1972, beginning a
long and gradual process of normalizing relations between the People's
Republic of China and the United States. Though this move helped
revive Nixon's sagging popularity, and contributed to his win in the
1972 election, it did not produce the short-term results for which
Kissinger had hoped. The Chinese seemed to have little influence on
North Vietnam's negotiating stance, and the Vietnam War continued to
drag on until U.S. withdrawal in 1973. Further, the budding U.S.-China
alliance had no measurable impact on U.S.-Soviet relations. But,
Nixon's visit did prove to be a watershed moment in American foreign
policy--it paved the way for future U.S. presidents to apply the
principle of realpolitik to their own international dealings.
history.com/tdih.do
1606 : Rembrandt born
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6959
1806 : Pike expedition sets out
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5178
1965 : Mariner 4 studies Martian surface
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5179
1997 : Versace murdered in Cunanan killing spree
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5180
##########################################
During a live television and radio broadcast, President Richard Nixon
stuns the nation by announcing that he will visit communist China the
following year. The statement marked a dramatic turning point in
U.S.-China relations, as well as a major shift in American foreign
policy.
Nixon was not always so eager to reach out to China. Since the
Communists came to power in China in 1949, Nixon had been one of the
most vociferous critics of American efforts to establish diplomatic
relations with the Chinese. His political reputation was built on
being strongly anti-communist, and he was a major figure in the
post-World War II Red Scare, during which the U.S. government launched
massive investigations into possible communist subversion in America.
By 1971, a number of factors pushed Nixon to reverse his stance on
China. First and foremost was the Vietnam War. Two years after
promising the American people "peace with honor," Nixon was as
entrenched in Vietnam as ever. His national security advisor, Henry
Kissinger, saw a way out: Since China's break with the Soviet Union in
the mid-1960s, the Chinese were desperate for new allies and trade
partners. Kissinger aimed to use the promise of closer relations and
increased trade possibilities with China as a way to put increased
pressure on North Vietnam--a Chinese ally--to reach an acceptable
peace settlement. Also, more importantly in the long run, Kissinger
thought the Chinese might become a powerful ally against the Soviet
Union, America's Cold War enemy. Kissinger called such foreign policy
'realpolitik,' or politics that favored dealing with other powerful
nations in a practical manner rather than on the basis of political
doctrine or ethics.
Nixon undertook his historic "journey for peace" in 1972, beginning a
long and gradual process of normalizing relations between the People's
Republic of China and the United States. Though this move helped
revive Nixon's sagging popularity, and contributed to his win in the
1972 election, it did not produce the short-term results for which
Kissinger had hoped. The Chinese seemed to have little influence on
North Vietnam's negotiating stance, and the Vietnam War continued to
drag on until U.S. withdrawal in 1973. Further, the budding U.S.-China
alliance had no measurable impact on U.S.-Soviet relations. But,
Nixon's visit did prove to be a watershed moment in American foreign
policy--it paved the way for future U.S. presidents to apply the
principle of realpolitik to their own international dealings.
history.com/tdih.do
1606 : Rembrandt born
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=6959
1806 : Pike expedition sets out
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5178
1965 : Mariner 4 studies Martian surface
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5179
1997 : Versace murdered in Cunanan killing spree
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=5180
##########################################
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