Deciphering China's Diplomatic Archives

Author: Xu Jingli
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: On the morning of January 16, 2004, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a very low-key opening ceremony for the "Foreign Ministry Open Archive Lending Office." For the first time, foreign archives formed since the founding of New China were opened to both domestic and international audiences. From the establishment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with over 170 staff members, to the selection and dispatch of "general ambassadors who had taken off their military uniforms"; from the official letter issued by Zhou Enlai as Minister of Foreign Affairs, to the formation of the "civilian-clad People's Liberation Army"; from the acceptance of diplomatic letters by New China, to the peak of diplomatic relations establishment; from the armed confrontation in the "Zisui" Incident, to the marathon-style Sino-UK diplomatic negotiations; from the "sticking" of in Nanjing, to the diplomatic confrontation triggered by the American spy case, and so on. Diplomacy began to unveil its mysterious veil. The enigmatic international situation, the ups and downs of diplomatic struggles—when everything became history, diplomatic archives, as the sediment of history, sealed yesterday's stories into one case after another. In January 2004, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the opening of some diplomatic archives to the public, and history unveiled its mysterious veil once again, with little-known stories once again stirring people's hearts. This book uses declassified diplomatic archives to present a series of historical scenes of diplomatic turmoil in the early days of the founding of New China: from the establishment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with over 170 staff members, to the selection and dispatch of the batch of army-level "general ambassadors"; from the diplomatic confrontation triggered by the American spy case, to the "Zisui" Incident and the marathon-style Sino-UK diplomatic negotiations; from the 100-hour flight journey of the Chinese government's special representative to the United Nations in New York, to the three urgent cables from Secretary-General Hammarskj?ld speeding to China for mediation; from the awkward handshake between the US and Chinese representatives at the Geneva Conference, to the unreturnable journey of the "Kashmir Princess" flight. With detailed materials and a light writing style, the author analyzes the turbulent diplomacy and the profound history for the readers.