b. détente
Kissinger believed that by easing tensions with its traditional enemy - a policy known as détente, from the French word for relaxation - Americans could achieve more of their political goals without war and the Soviets could be induced to push the North Vietnamese to the bargaining table. The Soviet Union had its own motivations for pursuing such a course, but Nixon added pressure by making overtures to communist China, a country the United States had refused to recognize.