A “Diplomatic Nuclear Explosion”? Sino-French Relations in the 1960s
CWIHP e-Dossier No. 53
A "Diplomatic Nuclear Explosion"? Sino-French Relations in the 1960s
Garret J. Martin
On 27 January 1964, France and the People’s Republic of China (PRC) officially established diplomatic relations. Not only did it constitute a real “diplomatic nuclear explosion,” according to Western media observers of the time,[1] but it also marked the first major Western recognition of the PRC since 1950.[2] The normalization with Communist China reflected a number of key objectives and perspectives of French President General Charles de Gaulle.
First, de Gaulle wanted to take advantage of the natural convergence between both countries; that is to say, their shared willingness to defy their more powerful allies and their shared opposition to superpower hegemony, in particular in the field of nuclear weapons. Second, by breaking solidarity with his Western allies—with the US first and foremost—and by acting unilaterally and secretly, de Gaulle was keen to highlight France’s credentials as a major power. Finally, beyond symbolism, the General hoped that a rapprochement and close cooperation with the PRC could help France to play a larger role in Southeast Asia, with the end goal of preserving peace in that region.
However, the high hopes entertained by de Gaulle for Sino-French relations never quite materialized during the rest of the 1960s, undermined by China and France’s conflicting goals toward the Vietnam War and the turmoil associated with the Cultural Revolution. The rise and fall of Sino-French relations is narrated in the riveting documents attached to this e-Dossier, including the secret negotiations in the fall 1963 ( and ), to the establishment of diplomatic ties, and bilateral relations before and after the Cultural Revolution (for instance and ).
But this e-Dossier is far more than simply an account of Sino-French relations in the 1960s, and instead it presents a wider and more significant picture of the global Cold War. Indeed, the documents highlight how French diplomats assessed China’s foreign policy toward Western and Eastern Europe, both before and after the two countries established official relations (see , , and ). The documents also delve into how French diplomats relied on their colleagues, both from the Western and the Eastern blocs, to gain a greater understanding of China and its international ambitions.
That includes not only the analysis of the British Foreign Office (see and ), but also the frustrations of Eastern European diplomats with their Chinese counterparts. As the Polish Ambassador to Japan M. Domagala pointed out eloquently in January 1968 (), “Westerners only tend to think of the difficulties they have in their own relations or in their relations with the socialist countries. They forget the problems that the Communist countries experience in their mutual relations.” Finally, the documents also track the fact that France’s decision to normalize relations with China led other Western countries, such as Canada and Italy, to follow in its footsteps ( and ).
Altogether, this e-Dossier is an important collection because of the significant light that it sheds not only on Sino-French relations, but on the wider dynamics of Sino-European relations during the crucial period of the 1960s and early 1970s.
Garret J. Martin is a Term Faculty at the School of International Service at American University, and an editor at Large at the European Institute, based in Washington, DC. He obtained his PhD in International History at the London School of Economics. He has written a number of journal articles and chapters on France and the Cold War, and is the author of General de Gaulle’s Cold War: Challenging American Hegemony, 1963-68 (New York: Berghahn Books, 2013).
List of Documents
Document No. 1
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 2
[Source: Documents diplomatiques Francais 1963. Tome 2, 1 Juillet - 31 Decembre (Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 2001), 458-459. Translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 3
[Source: Documents diplomatiques Francais 1963. Tome 2, 1 Juillet - 31 Decembre (Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 2001), 469-478. Translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 4
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 5
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 6
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 7
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 8
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 9
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 10
[Source: Documents Diplomatiques Français, 1966 tome 2 (1Jun–31Dec) (Bruxelles: Peter Lang, 2006), 874-878. Translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 11
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 12
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 13
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 14
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 15
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 16
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 17
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 18
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 19
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 20
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 21
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 22
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 23
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 24
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 25
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
Document No. 26
[Source: Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, France. Obtained by Enrico Fardella and translated by Garret Martin.]
[1] Zhang Xichang, “Souvenir de Zhang Xichang: Les négociations confidentielles et l'établissement des relations diplomatiques entre la Chine et la France,” 18 January 2004, (accessed 20 July 2014)
[2] John Fairbank and Roderick MacFarquhar, eds., The Cambridge History of China: Vol.14 (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1987), 532.
About the Author
Cold War International History Project
The Cold War International History Project supports the full and prompt release of historical materials by governments on all sides of the Cold War. Through an award winning Digital Archive, the Project allows scholars, journalists, students, and the interested public to reassess the Cold War and its many contemporary legacies. It is part of ϲ's History and Public Policy Program. Read more
History and Public Policy Program
The History and Public Policy Program makes public the primary source record of 20th and 21st century international history from repositories around the world, facilitates scholarship based on those records, and uses these materials to provide context for classroom, public, and policy debates on global affairs. Read more
