China-US Relation

America first contact with China was in the Qing dynasty, which was established in 1644 with Beijing as its capital. Qing gained back control of many border areas, including Xinjiang, Yunnan, Tibet, Mongolia, and Taiwan. The success of the early Qing period was based on the combination of Manchu martial prowess and traditional Chinese bureaucratic skills.

During the 19th century, Qing control weakened, and prosperity diminished. China suffered massive social strife, economic stagnation, explosive population growth, and Western penetration and influence. The Taiping and Nian rebellions, along with a Russian-supported Muslim separatist movement in Xinjiang, drained Chinese resources and almost toppled the dynasty.

Britain's desire to continue its illegal opium trade with China collided with imperial edicts prohibiting the addictive drug, and the First Opium War erupted in 1840. China lost the war; subsequently, Britain and other Western powers, including the United States, forcibly occupied "concessions" and gained special commercial privileges. Hong Kong was ceded to Britain in 1842 under the Treaty of Nanjing, and in 1898, when the Opium Wars finally ended, Britain executed a 99-year lease of the New Territories, significantly expanding the size of the Hong Kong colony.

As time went on, the Western powers, wielding superior military technology, gained more economic and political privileges. Reformist Chinese officials argued for the adoption of Western technology to strengthen the dynasty and counter Western advances, but the Qing court played down both the Western threat and the benefits of Western technology.

Frustrated by the Qing court's resistance to reform, young officials, military officers, and students--inspired by the revolutionary ideas of Sun Yat-sen--began to advocate the overthrow of the Qing dynasty and creation of a republic. A revolutionary military uprising on October 10, 1911, led to the abdication of the last Qing monarch.

In the 1920s, Sun Yat-sen established a revolutionary base in south China and set out to unite the fragmented nation. With Soviet assistance, he organized the Kuomintang (KMT), and entered into an alliance with Chinese Communist Party (CCP). After Sun's death in 1925, Chiang Kai-shek, supported by America, seized control of the KMT and succeeded in bringing most of south and central China under its rule. In 1927, Chiang turned on the CCP and executed many of its leaders. The remnants fled into the mountains of eastern China. In 1934, driven out of their mountain bases, the CCP's forces embarked on a "Long March" across China's most desolate terrain to the northwest, where they established a guerrilla base at Yan'an in Shaanxi Province.

During the "Long March," the Communists reorganized under a new leader, Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung). The bitter struggle between the KMT and the CCP continued openly or clandestinely through the 14-year long Japanese invasion (1931-45), even though the two parties nominally formed a united front to oppose the Japanese invaders in 1937. KMT had put all forces to fight against CCP through the period.

Soon after the Japanese defeat in 1945, KMT, with the support by America, asserted full war against CCP but failed. By 1949, the CCP occupied most of the country.

Chiang Kai-shek fled with the remnants of his KMT government and military forces to Taiwan, where he proclaimed Taipei to be China's "provisional capital" and vowed to re-conquer the Chinese mainland. The KMT authorities on Taiwan still call themselves the "Republic of China."

As the PLA armies moved south to complete the Communist conquest of China in 1949, the American embassy followed the Nationalist government headed by Chiang Kai-shek, finally moving to Taipei later that year.

Beginning in 1954 and continuing until 1970, the United States and China held 136 meetings at the ambassadorial level, first at Geneva and later at Warsaw. In the late 1960s, U.S. and Chinese political leaders decided that improved bilateral relations were in their common interest. In 1969, the United States initiated measures to relax trade restrictions and other impediments to bilateral contact.

On July 15, 1971, U.S. President Nixon announced that his Assistant for National Security Affairs, Dr. Henry Kissinger, had made a secret trip to Beijing to initiate direct contact with the Chinese leadership and that he, the President, had been invited to visit China.

In February 1972, President Nixon traveled to Beijing, Hangzhou, and Shanghai. At the conclusion of his trip, the U.S. and Chinese Governments issued the "Shanghai Communiqué", a statement of their foreign policy views. (For the complete text of the Shanghai Communiqué, see the Department of State Bulletin, March 20, 1972).

In the Communiqué, both nations pledged to work toward the full normalization of diplomatic relations. The U.S. acknowledged the Chinese position that all Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait maintain that there is only one China and that Taiwan is part of China. The statement enabled the U.S. and China to temporarily set aside the "crucial question obstructing the normalization of relations"--Taiwan--and to open trade and other contacts.

Liaison Office, 1973-78

In May 1973, in an effort to build toward the establishment of formal diplomatic relations, the U.S. and China established the United States Liaison Office (USLO) in Beijing and a counterpart Chinese office in Washington, DC. In the years between 1973 and 1978, such distinguished Americans as David Bruce, George Bush, Thomas Gates, and Leonard Woodcock served as chiefs of the USLO with the personal rank of Ambassador.

U.S. President Ford visited China in 1975 and reaffirmed the U.S. interest in normalizing relations with Beijing. Shortly after taking office in 1977, President Carter again reaffirmed the interest expressed in the Shanghai Communiqué. The United States and China announced on December 15, 1978, that the two governments would establish diplomatic relations on January 1, 1979.

Normalization

In the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations dated January 1, 1979, the United States transferred diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing. The U.S. reiterated the Shanghai Communiqué's acknowledgment of the Chinese position that there is only one China and that Taiwan is a part of China; Beijing acknowledged that the American people would continue to carry on commercial, cultural, and other unofficial contacts with the people of Taiwan. The Taiwan Relations Act made the necessary changes in U.S. domestic law to permit such unofficial relations with Taiwan to flourish.

Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping's January 1979 visit to Washington, DC initiated a series of important, high-level exchanges, which continued until the spring of 1989. This resulted in many bilateral agreements--especially in the fields of scientific, technological, and cultural interchange and trade relations. Since early 1979, the United States and China have initiated hundreds of joint research projects and cooperative programs under the Agreement on Cooperation in Science and Technology, the largest bilateral program.

On March 1, 1979, the United States and China formally established embassies in Beijing and Washington, DC. During 1979, outstanding private claims were resolved, and a bilateral trade agreement was concluded. Vice President Walter Mondale reciprocated Vice Premier Deng's visit with an August 1979 trip to China. This visit led to agreements in September 1980 on maritime affairs, civil aviation links, and textile matters, as well as a bilateral consular convention.

As a consequence of high-level and working-level contacts initiated in 1980, the dialogue between these tow nations broadened to cover a wide range of issues, including global and regional strategic problems, politico-military questions, including arms control, UN and other multilateral organization affairs, and international narcotics matters.

The expanding relationship that followed normalization was threatened in 1981 by Chinese objections to the level of U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. Secretary of State Alexander Haig visited China in June 1981 in an effort to resolve Chinese questions about America's unofficial relations with Taiwan. Eight months of negotiations produced the U.S.-China joint communiqué of August 17, 1982. In this third communiqué, the U.S. stated its intention to reduce gradually the level of arms sales to Taiwan, and the Chinese described as a fundamental policy their effort to strive for a peaceful resolution to the Taiwan question. Meanwhile, Vice President Bush visited China in May 1982.

High-level exchanges continued to be a significant means for developing U.S.-China relations in the 1980s. President Reagan and Premier Zhao Ziyang made reciprocal visits in 1984. In July 1985, President Li Xiannian traveled to the United States, the first such visit by a Chinese head of state. Vice President Bush visited China in October 1985 and opened the U.S. Consulate General in Chengdu, the U.S.'s fourth consular post in China. Further exchanges of cabinet-level officials occurred from 1985-89, capped by President Bush's visit to Beijing in February 1989.

Since then, a large and growing number of cultural exchange activities undertaken at all levels gave the American and Chinese peoples broad exposure to each other's cultural, artistic, and educational achievements. Numerous Chinese professional and official delegations visited the United States each month. These exchanges will continue and will help to improve the relation between these two countries.

Chinese President Jiang Zemin visited the United States in the fall of 1997, the first state visit to the U.S. by a Chinese president since 1985. In connection with that visit, the two sides reached agreement on implementation of their 1985 agreement on the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy, as well as a number of other issues. American President Clinton visited China in June 1998. He traveled extensively in China and direct interaction with the Chinese people included live speeches and a radio show, allowing the American President to convey first hand to the Chinese people a sense of American ideals and values.

Recently US again started ill actions against China with:

• Bombed Chinese Embassy in Kosovo and killed several Chinese reporters. No convincible reason was given. 
• Accused China espionage without providing any evidence.
• Accused China illegal political contribution in US election
• Some of the Congressmen attempt to support independent movements of Taiwan and Tibet.

For espionage and illegal political contribution, American government should be second to none. In the past US had planed and influenced many civil wars and political infightings in other countries. America should clean up own back yard before accusing wrongdoing of others. Secondly no evidence has been tabled to prove that the above accusation had happened. None of the American has been charged in the court. It is very unfair to some of the American Chinese scientists who were fired because of that. The basic principle of American's law is to protect innocent until proven guilty. It seems that this principle has double standard just like any thing else in America.

For bombing China Embassy, several Chinese reporters were killed. American government had put forward an excuse that all these were caused by mistakes in using the old maps. America media, which were so proud of justice and fairness, put all their efforts to emphasize in the "over-reaction" of Chinese demonstrations against the wrongdoing of American bombing. The media purposely forgot their responsibility to find out the real reasons how that happened.

Just back off and think again. If this is American Embassy get bomb and American reporters were killed, how the American and the media will react (Of course, this never happens since in this world, except America and the West, no country will send army to fight in other people's land).

Even the reason given by American government was true that the map were wrong, it proved again to the world that other people's life is too cheap. American army does not have to pay any attention and no need to go through a tie-control military process for validating a bombing target. Professional guess is good enough because there is no risk of US casualty. American life is more precious than any other people.

It is to everyone's benefit that a good China-US relation must be maintained. Any school of thoughts that China presents thread to Asia or the world peace is nonsense. Any one familiar with Chinese history and philosophy should know that China never invaded or even threatened to invade other countries. Basically offensive is not Chinese culture.

American government has to grip firm on the basic principles:

• Stick to "Shanghai Communiqué"
• Move away from the military policy of blocking China

Most of American people sincerely wish to see China to become a more free and democratic country. Based on that, let Chinese free to choose their own destination and progress in the pace that they feel comfortable with. Recognize the culture and historical differences among nations.

It is against the America own principles that forcing Chinese people to drink coffee every day and not allow them to drink tea instead, just because American like to drink coffee.

Communist or capitalist, it should let Chinese to decide. We firmly believe that China will eventually become a pleasant country to live. China is not communist, nor capitalist. China is China, a nation cultured by Taoism, Confucianism and Buddhism for 5000 years.   

America people should have confidence that Chinese can take care of their own matters such as Taiwan, Tibet, freedom and democracy.

Any foreign interference and intervention will cause great uneasiness to Chinese people with their struggling experience in America, the West and Japanese invasion in the past. When a nation, with a population of 1.2 billion, feels being threaten, the turbulence effect will soon spread rapidly to the rest of the world.

Stability is what majority of the Chinese would like to see.

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