Question

What opened relations between China and the United States?

A) the Sino-Soviet split
B) the Great Leap Forward
C) the death of Mao Zedong
D) the Great Proletarian Culture Revolution

Answer 1

The correct answer is A. What opened relations between China and the United States was the Sino-Soviet Split.

Step-by-step explanation:

During World War II, China was a close ally of the United States. With the founding of the People's Republic of China with its Communist-influenced government in 1949, the United States did not immediately recognize the newly established government. Until January 1979, the United States recognized the Republic of China on the Island of Taiwan as the legitimate government of China, not maintaining diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China on the continent. In the middle of the Cold War, the Sino-Soviet rupture favored the United States to establish relations with China (on the continent) and use it as a counterattack on the Soviet Union and its influence. It was not until after January 1979 that the US government changed Taipei's recognition to Beijing, as well as its diplomatic relations.

Answer 2

I would say that the Sino-Soviet split would have helped to open relations between China and the US because it would decrease the hegemony of the Soviet Union and create a political vacuum that the US could try to fill with trade etc with China.