Joint Communique Following Discussions With Leaders of the People's Republic of China

Shanghai, February 27, 1972

(1) President Richard Nixon of the United States of America visited the People's Republic of China at the invitation of Premier Chou En-lai of the People's Republic of China from February 21 to February 28, 1972. Accompanying the President were Mrs. Nixon, U.S. Secretary of State William Rogers, Assistant to the President Dr. Henry Kissinger, and other American officials.

(2) President Nixon met with Chairman Mao Tse-tung of the Communist Party of China on February 21. The two leaders had a serious and frank exchange of views on Sino-U.S. relations and world affairs.

(3) During the visit, extensive, earnest, and frank discussions were held between President Nixon and Premier Chou En-lai on the normalization of relations between the United States of America and the People's Republic of China, as well as on other matters of interest to both sides. In addition, Secretary of State William Rogers and Foreign Minister Chi P'eng-fei held talks in the same spirit.

(4) President Nixon and his party visited Peking and viewed cultural, industrial and agricultural sites, and they also toured Hangchow and Shanghai where, continuing discussions with Chinese leaders, they viewed similar places of interest.

(5) The leaders of the People's Republic of China and the United States of America found it beneficial to have this opportunity, after so many years without contact, to present candidly to one another their views on a variety of issues. They reviewed the international situation in which important changes and great upheavals are taking place and expounded their respective positions and attitudes.

(6) The U.S. side stated: Peace in Asia and peace in the world requires efforts both to reduce immediate tensions and to eliminate the basic causes of conflict. The United States will work for a just and secure peace: just, because it fulfills the aspirations of peoples and nations for freedom and progress; secure, because it removes the danger of foreign aggression. The United States supports individual freedom and social progress for all the peoples of the world, free of outside pressure or intervention. The United States believes that the effort to reduce tensions is served by improving communication between countries that have different ideologies so as to lessen the risks of confrontation through accident, miscalculation or misunderstanding. Countries should treat each other with mutual respect and be willing to compete peacefully, letting performance be the ultimate judge. No country should claim infallibility and each country should be prepared to re-examine its own attitudes for the common good.

(7) The United States stressed that the peoples of Indochina should be allowed to determine their destiny without outside intervention; its constant primary objective has been a negotiated solution; the eight-point proposal put forward by the Republic of Vietnam and the United States on January 27, 1972 represents a basis for the attainment of that objective; in the absence of a negotiated settlement the United States envisages the ultimate withdrawal of all U.S. forces from the region consistent with the aim of self-determination for each country of Indochina. The United States will maintain its close ties with and support for the Republic of Korea; the United States will support efforts of the Republic of Korea to seek a relaxation of tension and increased communication in the Korean peninsula. The United States places the highest value on its friendly relations with Japan; it will continue to develop the existing close bonds. Consistent with the United Nations Security Council Resolution of December 21, 1971, the United States favors the continuation of the ceasefire between India and Pakistan and the withdrawal of all military forces to within their own territories and to their own sides of the ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir; the United States supports the right of the peoples of South Asia to shape their own future in peace, free of military threat, and without having the area become the subject of great power rivalry.

(8) The Chinese side stated: Wherever there is oppression, there is resistance. Countries want independence, nations want liberation and the people want revolution—this has become the irresistible trend of history. All nations, big or small, should be equal; big nations should not bully the small and strong nations should not bully the weak. China will never be a superpower and it opposes hegemony and power politics of any kind. The Chinese side stated that it firmly supports the struggles of all the oppressed people and nations for freedom and liberation and that the people of all countries have the right to choose their social systems according to their own wishes and the right to safeguard the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of their own countries and oppose foreign aggression, interference, control and subversion. All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.

(9) The Chinese side expressed its firm support to the peoples of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia in their efforts for the attainment of their goal and its firm support to the seven-point proposal of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam and the elaboration of February this year on the two key problems in the proposal, and to the Joint Declaration of the Summit Conference of the Indochinese Peoples. It firmly supports the eight-point program for the peaceful unification of Korea put forward by the Government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on April 12, 1971, and the stand for the abolition of the“U.N. Commission for the Unification and Rehabilitation of Korea.”It firmly opposes the revival and outward expansion of Japanese militarism and firmly supports the Japanese people's desire to build an independent, democratic, peaceful and neutral Japan. It firmly maintains that India and Pakistan should, in accordance with the United Nations resolutions on the India-Pakistan question, immediately withdraw all their forces to their respective territories and to their own sides of the ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir and firmly supports the Pakistan Government and people in their struggle to preserve their independence and sovereignty and the people of Jammu and Kashmir in their struggle for the right of self-determination.

(10) There are essential differences between China and the United States in their social systems and foreign policies. However, the two sides agreed that countries, regardless of their social systems, should conduct their relations on the principles of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states, nonaggression against other states, noninterference in the internal affairs of other states, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence. International disputes should be settled on this basis, without resorting to the use or threat of force. The United States and the People's Republic of China are prepared to apply these principles to their mutual relations.

(11) With these principles of international relations in mind the two sides stated that:

• —progress toward the normalization of relations between China and the United States is in the interests of all countries;
• —both wish to reduce the danger of international military conflict;
• —neither should seek hegemony in the Asia–Pacific region and each is opposed to efforts by any other country or group of countries to establish such hegemony; and
• —neither is prepared to negotiate on behalf of any third party or to enter into agreements or understandings with the other directed at other states.

(12) Both sides are of the view that it would be against the interests of the peoples of the world for any major country to collude with another against other countries, or for major countries to divide up the world into spheres of interest.

(13) The two sides reviewed the long-standing serious disputes between China and the United States. The Chinese side reaffirmed its position: The Taiwan question is the crucial question obstructing the normalization of relations between China and the United States; the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government of China; Taiwan is a province of China which has long been returned to the motherland; the liberation of Taiwan is China's internal affair in which no other country has the right to interfere; and all U.S. forces and military installations must be withdrawn from Taiwan. The Chinese Government firmly opposes any activities which aim at the creation of “one China, one Taiwan,”“one China, two governments,”“two Chinas,”and “independent Taiwan”or advocate that “the status of Taiwan remains to be determined.”

(14) The U.S. side declared: The United States acknowledges that all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintain there is but one China and that Taiwan is a part of China. The United States Government does not challenge that position. It reaffirms its interest in a peaceful settlement of the Taiwan question by the Chinese themselves. With this prospect in mind, it affirms the ultimate objective of the withdrawal of all U.S. forces and military installations from Taiwan. In the meantime, it will progressively reduce its forces and military installations on Taiwan as the tension in the area diminishes.

(15) The two sides agreed that it is desirable to broaden the understanding between the two peoples. To this end, they discussed specific areas in such fields as science, technology, culture, sports and journalism, in which people-to-people contacts and exchanges would be mutually beneficial. Each side undertakes to facilitate the further development of such contacts and exchanges.

(16) Both sides view bilateral trade as another area from which mutual benefit can be derived, and agreed that economic relations based on equality and mutual benefit are in the interest of the people of the two countries. They agree to facilitate the progressive development of trade between their two countries.

(17) The two sides agreed that they will stay in contact through various channels, including the sending of a senior U.S. representative to Peking from time to time for concrete consultations to further the normalization of relations between the two countries and continue to exchange views on issues of common interest.

(18) The two sides expressed the hope that the gains achieved during this visit would open up new prospects for the relations between the two countries. They believe that the normalization of relations between the two countries is not only in the interest of the Chinese and American peoples but also contributes to the relaxation of tension in Asia and the world.

(19) President Nixon, Mrs. Nixon and the American party expressed their appreciation for the gracious hospitality shown them by the Government and people of the People's Republic of China.

[Source] Office of the Historian, U.S. Department of State (https://history.state.gov/

historicaldocuments/Frus1967-76v17/d203, downloaded September 17, 2023, 1718 words)

中华人民共和国和美利坚合众国联合公报 (“上海公报”)

1972年2月27日 上海

(1) 应中华人民共和国总理周恩来的邀请，美利坚合众国总统理查德·尼克松自一九七二年二月二十一日至二月二十八日访问了中华人民共和国。陪同总统的有尼克松夫人、美国国务卿威廉·罗杰斯、总统助理亨利·基辛格博士和其他美国官员。

(2) 尼克松总统于二月二十一日会见了中国共产党主席毛泽东。两位领导人就中美关系和国际事务认真、坦率地交换了意见。

(3) 访问中，尼克松总统和周恩来总理就美利坚合众国和中华人民共和国关系正常化以及双方关心的其他问题进行了广泛、认真和坦率的讨论。此外，国务卿威廉·罗杰斯和外交部长姬鹏飞也以同样精神进行了会谈。

(4) 尼克松总统及其一行访问了北京，参观了文化、工业和农业项目，还访问了杭州和上海，在那里继续同中国领导人进行讨论，并参观了类似的项目。

(5) 中华人民共和国和美利坚合众国领导人经过这么多年一直没有接触之后，现在有机会坦率地互相介绍彼此对各种问题的观点，对此，双方认为是有益的。他们回顾了经历着重大变化和巨大动荡的国际形势，阐明了各自的立场和态度。

(6) 中国方面声明：哪里有压迫，哪里就有反抗。国家要独立，民族要解放，人民要革命，已成为不可抗拒的历史潮流。国家不分大小，应该一律平等，大国不应欺负小国，强国不应欺负弱国。中国决不做超级大国，并且反对任何霸权主义和强权政治。中国方面表示：坚决支持一切被压迫人民和被压迫民族争取自由、解放的斗争；各国人民有权按照自己的意愿，选择本国的社会制度，有权维护本国独立、主权和领土完整，反对外来侵略、干涉、控制和颠覆。一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

(7) 中国方面表示：坚决支持越南、老挝、柬埔寨三国人民为实现自己的目标所作的努力，坚决支持越南南方共和国临时革命政府的七点建议以及在今年二月对其中两个关键问题的说明和印度支那人民最高级会议联合声明；坚决支持朝鲜民主主义人民共和国政府一九七一年四月十二日提出的朝鲜和平统一的八点方案和取消“联合国韩国统一复兴委员会”的主张；坚决反对日本军国主义的复活和对外扩张，坚决支持日本人民要求建立一个独立、民主、和平和中立的日本的愿望；坚决主张印度和巴基斯坦按照联合国关于印巴问题的决议，立即把自己的军队全部撤回到本国境内以及查谟和克什米尔停火线的各自一方，坚决支持巴基斯坦政府和人民维护独立、主权的斗争以及查谟和克什米尔人民争取自决权的斗争。

(8) 美国方面声明：为了亚洲和世界的和平，需要对缓和当前的紧张局势和消除冲突的基本原因作出努力。美国将致力于建立公正而稳定的和平。这种和平是公正的，因为它满足各国人民和各国争取自由和进步的愿望。这种和平是稳定的，因为它消除外来侵略的危险。美国支持全世界各国人民在没有外来压力和干预的情况下取得个人自由和社会进步。美国相信，改善具有不同意识形态的国与国之间的联系，以便减少由于事故、错误估计或误会而引起的对峙的危险，有助于缓和紧张局势的努力。各国应该互相尊重并愿进行和平竞赛，让行动作出最后判断。任何国家都不应自称一贯正确，各国都要准备为了共同的利益重新检查自己的态度。

(9) 美国强调：应该允许印度支那各国人民在不受外来干涉的情况下决定自己的命运；美国一贯的首要目标是谈判解决；越南共和国和美国在一九七二年一月二十七日提出的八点建议提供了实现这个目标的基础；在谈判得不到解决时，美国预计在符合印度支那每个国家自决这一目标的情况下从这个地区最终撤出所有美国军队。美国将保持其与大韩民国的密切联系和对它的支持；美国将支持大韩民国为谋求在朝鲜半岛缓和紧张局势和增加联系的努力。美国最高度地珍视同日本的友好关系，并将继续发展现存的紧密纽带。按照一九七一年十二月二十一日联合国安全理事会的决议，美国赞成印度和巴基斯坦之间的停火继续下去，并把全部军事力量撤至本国境内以及查谟和克什米尔停火线的各自一方；美国支持南亚各国人民和平地、不受军事威胁地建设自己的未来的权利，而不使这个地区成为大国竞争的目标。

(10) 中美两国的社会制度和对外政策有着本质的区别。但是，双方同意，各国不论社会制度如何，都应根据尊重各国主权和领土完整、不侵犯别国、不干涉别国内政、平等互利、和平共处的原则来处理国与国之间的关系。国际争端应在此基础上予以解决，而不诉诸武力和武力威胁。美国和中华人民共和国准备在他们的相互关系中实行这些原则。

(11) 考虑到国际关系的上述这些原则，双方声明：

──中美两国关系走向正常化是符合所有国家的利益的；

──双方都希望减少国际军事冲突的危险；

──任何一方都不应该在亚洲－太平洋地区谋求霸权，每一方都反对任何其他国家或国家集团建立这种霸权的努力；

──任何一方都不准备代表任何第三方进行谈判，也不准备同对方达成针对其他国家的协议或谅解。

(12) 双方都认为，任何大国与另一大国进行勾结反对其他国家，或者大国在世界上划分利益范围，那都是违背世界各国人民利益的。

(13) 双方回顾了中美两国之间长期存在的严重争端。中国方面重申自己的立场：台湾问题是阻碍中美两国关系正常化的关键问题；中华人民共和国政府是中国的唯一合法政府；台湾是中国的一个省，早已归还祖国；解放台湾是中国内政，别国无权干涉；全部美国武装力量和军事设施必须从台湾撤走。中国政府坚决反对任何旨在制造“一中一台”、“一个中国、两个政府”、“两个中国”、“台湾独立”和鼓吹“台湾地位未定”的活动。

(14) 美国方面声明：美国认识到，在台湾海峡两边的所有中国人都认为只有一个中国，台湾是中国的一部分。美国政府对这一立场不提出异议。它重申它对由中国人自己和平解决台湾问题的关心。考虑到这一前景，它确认从台湾撤出全部美国武装力量和军事设施的最终目标。在此期间，它将随着这个地区紧张局势的缓和逐步减少它在台湾的武装力量和军事设施。

(15) 双方同意，扩大两国人民之间的了解是可取的。为此目的，他们就科学、技术、文化、体育和新闻等方面的具体领域进行了讨论，在这些领域中进行人民之间的联系和交流将会是互相有利的。双方各自承诺对进一步发展这种联系和交流提供便利。

(16) 双方把双边贸易看作是另一个可以带来互利的领域，并一致认为平等互利的经济关系是符合两国人民的利益的。他们同意为逐步发展两国间的贸易提供便利。

(17) 双方同意，他们将通过不同渠道保持接触，包括不定期地派遣美国高级代表前来北京，就促进两国关系正常化进行具体磋商并继续就共同关心的问题交换意见。

(18) 双方希望，这次访问的成果将为两国关系开辟新的前景。双方相信，两国关系正常化不仅符合中美两国人民的利益，而且会对缓和亚洲及世界紧张局势作出贡献。

(19) 尼克松总统、尼克松夫人及美方一行对中华人民共和国政府和人民给予他们有礼貌的款待，表示感谢。

【来源】中华人民共和国中央政府 (https://www.gov.cn/ztzl/zmdh/content_