China and the United States

Treaty Diplomacy and a Resident Legation

The first formal relationship between the United States and Qing China grew out of treaty negotiations in 1844. Caleb Cushing met Chinese officials in June and concluded the Treaty of Wangxia on July 3. American representation in China preceded a permanent Chinese mission in Washington by more than three decades. The Qing government sent a special embassy led by Anson Burlingame, Zhi Gang, and Sun Jiagu in 1868. The envoys notified William H. Seward of their arrival on June 2 and requested an audience to deliver their credentials. Zhi’s later edited account describes the White House ceremony, with Burlingame entering first and the two Chinese envoys following. [1] [5] [15]

Chen Lanbin headed the resident mission received by President Rutherford B. Hayes on September 28, 1878. Within months, migration was a test of the treaty relationship: Hayes vetoed an exclusion bill in March 1879 because it conflicted with the Burlingame Treaty. Restrictions on migration and the treatment of Chinese residents remained subjects of negotiation. [6] [5]

Recognition through Changes of Government

The fall of the Qing dynasty in 1912 raised the question of which government American diplomats could formally recognize. Washington withheld recognition of the provisional republic after the emperor’s abdication and recognized the republican government in May 1913. A further period of de facto dealings began in December 1924. In July 1928, signature of a tariff treaty with Nationalist officials accompanied American recognition of their government. The treaty promised Chinese tariff autonomy, addressing a restriction embedded in the earlier treaty system. [1] [7]

Embassy rank followed under the Republic of China in 1935. The Washington mission and the American mission in China had separate accreditation dates, and the change did not erase the treaty privileges still held by foreign powers. During the war against Japan, the two governments signed a treaty in Washington on January 11, 1943, relinquishing American extraterritorial rights. It entered into force on May 20 after ratifications were exchanged. [3] [1] [8] [9]

War and Rivalry after the Revolution

During the Korean War, Chinese forces fought the United Nations force led by the United States. Washington sought to isolate Beijing while supporting South Korea. [16]

Parallel Representation and Normalization

After the Communist victory on the mainland in 1949, the United States continued diplomatic relations with the Republic of China government, which moved to Taiwan. The opening to Beijing in the 1970s created a second channel. Liaison offices were agreed in 1973, and the PRC office in Washington operated while the Republic of China retained its recognized embassy. Huang Zhen’s July conversation with Henry Kissinger made the limit explicit: Zhou Enlai could not visit while that embassy remained. Yet the liaison officials could discuss regional conflicts and practical arrangements for their mission. [1] [10] [11]

President Jimmy Carter announced the normalization agreement on December 15, 1978, in Washington, simultaneously with its release in Beijing on December 16. Recognition of the PRC government and establishment of diplomatic relations took effect on January 1, 1979. American diplomatic relations with the Republic of China ended that day. The communiqué provided for continuing unofficial ties with the people of Taiwan and set March 1 for embassies and an exchange of ambassadors. The American liaison office in Beijing became an embassy on that later date; the embassy in Taipei closed on February 28. [12] [13] [14]

Economic Opening and Political Conflict

Normalization coincided with Deng Xiaoping’s economic reforms and a substantial expansion of commercial and cultural exchange. The Chinese government’s violent suppression of demonstrations in June 1989 brought renewed conflict with Washington. President George H. W. Bush suspended military sales and high level exchanges, while Congress pressed for stronger penalties. Debate over trade treatment continued into the Clinton administration. [17]

Trade negotiations nevertheless continued. A bilateral agreement in November 1999 and further talks in Shanghai in June 2001 addressed obstacles to China’s entry into the World Trade Organization, including agricultural support, services, and trading rights. China became a member on 11 December 2001. [18] [19]

In July 2018, the Trump administration imposed additional tariffs of 25 percent on Chinese imports worth about $34 billion. The United States Trade Representative described the measures as a response to forced technology transfers and restrictions on American intellectual property. [21]

Managing Competition through Diplomatic Channels

By the November 2023 meeting at Woodside, Biden and Xi were discussing how to prevent competition from becoming armed conflict. According to the American readout, they agreed to resume military communications and counternarcotics cooperation, while climate officials continued talks. Biden also raised human rights, trade practices, technology restrictions, and Taiwan, affirming opposition to unilateral changes to the status quo and calling for peaceful resolution of differences across the strait. [20]

In September 2024, the Biden administration finalized increases to selected tariffs after reviewing the measures begun in 2018. Its review concluded that Chinese technology transfer practices still burdened American trade and acknowledged the economic costs of China’s retaliatory tariffs. [22]

Related Reading

• Rival Governments and Recognition in Washington
• United States and the People's Republic of China Establish Diplomatic Relations [12] [14]