If Nixon Is Willing To Come, I Am Ready To Hold Talks With Him

Date: 1970-12-18
Source: en:FLP-Diplomacy
IF NIXON IS WILLING TO COME,
I AM READY TO HOLD TALKS WITH HIM*
{December 18, 1970)
I welcome Nixon's winning the election. Why? There is a deceptive side
of him as well, but there is less of it. Do you believe it? He is accustomed to
use hard tactics, but sometimes also soft ones. If he wishes to come to Beijing,
please tell him he should do it secretly, not openly—just get on a plane and
come. It doesn't matter whether negotiations succeed or fail. Why should we
maintain such a deadlock? However, there is no secret in the United States. If
the president goes abroad, it is impossible to keep it secret. In coming to
China, he is sure to declare his aim is to draw in China in order to make things
difficult for the Soviet Union. Hence he does not dare to act this way at
present. To punish the Soviet Union is disadvantageous to the U.S., and to
punish China is equally disadvantageous.
One of our policies now is refusing to let Americans visit China. Is this
policy correct? The Ministry of Foreign Affairs should study it. Leftists,
moderates and rightists should all be approved to come to China. Why the
rightists? That is to say Nixon, who represents the monopoly capitalists. The
reason is that the moderates and leftists are unable to solve any problem, and
right now we must straighten things out with Nixon. We have to let him come
as a matter of course.
He long ago wrote letters saying he would send a representative to China,
which we didn't publish in order to keep them secret. He was not interested
in the Warsaw talks and wished to negotiate with us personally. Therefore
I say I am ready to hold talks with him if he is willing to come. It doesn't
matter if the negotiations succeed or fail, if we quarrel or not, if he comes in
the capacity of a tourist or the President. In short, either way will do. I don't
think I shall quarrel with him, except to give him some criticism. We shall
likewise make self-criticism, i.e. admit our mistakes and faults. For example,
* These are excerpts from Mao Zedong's talk with Edgar Snow, an American writer
and a friend to China.
our production level is lower than that of the U.S., but nothing else.
It was proposed by Nixon himself that he send a representative to China
for negotiations. Documents prove that he would like to negotiate in person
either in Beijing or in Washington, without the knowledge of our Ministry of
Foreign Affairs or going through the State Department in the U.S. It was
extremely mysterious. It was not to be made known. Such information was to
be kept top secret.
The U.S. will hold general elections in 1972. I reckon Nixon won't come
himself, but may send someone to China during the first half of the year. If
he wants to talk with us, that would be the time. He is reluctant to give up
Taiwan while Chiang Kai-shek is still alive. What does he have to do with
Taiwan? Taiwan's present situation was created by Truman and Acheson
and followed by another President; only then did Nixon have any share in the
Taiwan question. Then came Kennedy. Nixon visited Taiwan as Vice-
President. He said there were more than ten million people in Taiwan, but I
say there are over one billion people in Asia and 300 million in Africa, all
rising in rebellion.
China and the U.S. will establish diplomatic relations sooner or later. Will
China and the U.S. remain for 100 years without establishing relations? After
all, we haven't occupied your Long Island!
(From the verbatim record)