The Future of the U.S.-China Relationship Lies in 1972
A New Shanghai Communique, based on the Nixon-era agreement, could help resolve tensions without mincing words.
Comfortable positions.
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Fifty years ago on Feb. 27, the U.S. and China issued the Shanghai Communique to memorialize President Richard Nixon’s epic opening to China. National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, two of the most skilled diplomats of the 20th century, negotiated the unusual document, describing an “international situation in which important changes and great upheavals are taking place.”
As leaders in another era of important changes and great upheavals, Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping need to recall the work of their predecessors and devise a New Shanghai Communique.