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Effect

 of  the  Cold  War  on  China  


 
Effect  
-­‐ 1945-­‐1950  
o 1945-­‐49:  CCW,  with  no  major  Cold  War  effects  
o 1949:  People’s  Republic  of  China  proclaimed  
-­‐ 1950-­‐1960  
o 1950:  Sino-­‐Soviet  Friendship  Treaty  –  China  now  considered  as  part  of  the  ‘Russian  Bloc’,  but  China  didn’t  belong  to  the  
USSR  or  the  US  
§ Did  lean  toward  the  USSR  for  help  though  
o Late  1950:  China  decided  to  intervene  in  the  Korean  War  
§ Led  to  NSC-­‐68  (US  military  buildup,  which  lead  to  global  military  buildup)  
§ Gained  China  prestige  in  the  3rd  World,  but  now  tied  to  USSR  
§ Led  to  firm  commitments  from  the  US  to  Taiwan  and  the  French  in  Indochina  
o Stood  behind  the  Viet  Minh  in  Vietnam  
o 1959:  Soviets  pulled  out  of  a  year  where  they  promised  to  provide  China  with  nuclear  technology  –  had  taken  two  years  to  
negotiate,  and  Mao  reacted  strongly  
§ One  of  the  reasons  for  the  Sino-­‐Soviet  split  
-­‐ 1950s-­‐1970  
o Great  Leap  Forward  and  Cultural  Revolution  led  to  the  isolation  of  China,  as  she  opposed  both  the  US  and  USSR  
o 1964:  Exploded  first  atomic  bomb,  most  likely  target  was  USSR  
-­‐ 1970-­‐1980  
o Resumed  relations  with  US  
§ Sent  shock  waves  to  USSR  
§ Made  Soviets  fully  embark  on  a  détente  policy  
§ China  was  now  accepted  in  the  UN,  and  supported  ending  the  Vietnam  War  
o 1972:  Nixon  visited  China,  and  accepted  the  legitimacy  of  the  People’s  Republic,  promising  to  pull  out  forces  from  Taiwan  
o Late  1970s:  Deng  was  the  real  leader  of  China  
o 1978:  US  broke  off  relations  with  Taiwan  
o 1979:  US  gave  full  diplomatic  recognition  to  China  
o During  this  time,  many  conflicts  that  the  USSR  and  China  were  on  opposite  sides  of  
-­‐ 1980-­‐1990  
o Embarked  on  modernization  under  Deng,  and  maintained  good  relations  with  the  US  
 

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