Future of Sino-US ties lies in cooperation

More than 40 years ago China and the United States engaged in "ping pong diplomacy", easing the tensions between the two countries ever since the founding of New China in 1949.

With the People's Republic of China retaining its rightful seat in the United Nations Security Council in 1971 and its international status continuously improving, it had become apparent that the US policy to contain New China would be fruitless.

The US, on the other hand, was mired in the Vietnam War, which was sapping its national power. So the US administration realized it should establish friendly relations with China in order to end the war. Against this background, on Jan 1, 1979, the two countries formally established diplomatic relations.