The Week that Changed the World (3)

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The moment his presidential plane touched down in the Beijing airport on February 21st, 1972, U.S. President Richard Nixon along with other members of his delegation knew they were just about to enter a world of uncharted territory. For nearly a quarter of a century since 1949, China-U.S. relations had been marked by isolation, wariness and sometimes enmity. But on that day in 1972, the man who helmed the U.S. was on Chinese soil, trying to bury the hatchet and turn a new page in history.

For the Chinese, such rapprochement had seemed unthinkable even just a few years back. A year before, Chinese and U.S. Pingpong players had staged a breath-taking match in Beijing, but a summit like this was simply a matter on a different scale. It took the Chinese enormous courage and wisdom to put the ideological schism aside and host U.S. president at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing under the watchful eyes of the world.

With great caution, President Richard Nixon, Premier Zhou Enlai and Chairman Mao Zedong handled with kid glove their one-on-one meetings, during which both leaders had a candid exchange of views on bilateral and international issues and got some key facts straight, most importantly, the issue of Taiwan. Both sides affirmed in the Shanghai Communiqué issued during Nixon's ensuing visit to Shanghai that Taiwan is an integral part of China.

So how did the meetings between President Nixon and Chinese leaders go in 1972? And how do eye witnesses, who experienced the event first hand, describe the visit?

Ni hao, you're listening to  People In the Know, bringing you insights into the headline news in China and around the world, I'm Zheng Chenguang in Beijing. This week, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of U.S. President Richard Nixon's landmark visit to China, People in the Know brings you a series of programs featuring exclusive interviews with people who have participated in this significant event, as well as prominent scholars from both sides to review Nixon's visit and 40 years' development of Sino-U.S. relations.

In this edition of the program, We talk to Nicholas Platt, a prominent U.S. diplomat, who joined President Nixon's 1972 China trip as an aide to Secretary of State William Rogers.