U.S.-China Relations: From Hostility to Euphoria to Realism

For the leaders in Beijing, the People's Republic of China has no eternal allies or perpetual enemies; only its interests are permanent. This principle has guided China's external relations in the past three decades and has shaped its alignments with the USSR, the United States, and other major powers. Foreign policy of the People's Republic will be influenced by these objectives: containment of Soviet expansionism; acquisition of foreign capital and technology to accelerate China's program of modernization; and Taiwan's reunification with the mainland. The United States is a crucial factor in each of these national objectives; hence Beijing seeks good relations with Washington. For domestic reasons, Beijing has inflated the importance of Taiwan in Sino-U.S. relations, but an agreement in August 1982 has provided a framework to manage Sino-U.S. disagreement about Taiwan. Sino-U.S. relations have improved markedly, as attested by the Zhao-Reagan exchange of visits and increasing economic cooperation.