1972 Nixon visit to China

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For the opera by John Adams, see Nixon in China (opera).

From February 21 to February 28, 1972, U.S. President Richard Nixon traveled to Beijing, Hangzhou and Shanghai. It was the first time a U.S. president had visited the People's Republic of China, which at the time did not maintain diplomatic relations with the U.S. At the conclusion of his trip, the United States and the PRC Governments issued the Shanghai Communiqué, a statement of their foreign policy views. In the Communiqué, both nations pledged to work toward the full normalization of diplomatic relations. The U.S. acknowledged the notion that all Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait maintain that there is only one China and that Taiwan is part of China.  Nixon and the U.S. government reaffirmed their interests in a peaceful settlement of the Taiwan question by agreeing with the People's Republic of China themselves.  The statement enabled the U.S. and PRC to temporarily set aside the "crucial question obstructing the normalization of relations" http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/ziliao/3602/3604/t18006.htm concerning the political status of Taiwan and to open trade and other contacts.  However, the United States continued to maintain official relations with the government of the Republic of China in Taiwan until 1979 when the U.S. Liaison Office in Beijing was upgraded to an embassy.

The meeting in media and culture

Nixon's historic visit has been turned into an opera and a popular quote.
Max Frankel of The New York Times received the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting for his coverage of the event.

1972 Nixon visit to China

The meeting in media and culture

References

See also