china and the Soviet uNion
- Nixon and Kissinger wanted to forge a new relationship with the Chinese communists- in part to strengthen them as a counterbalance to the Soviet Union.
- In July 1971, Nixon sent Henry Kissinger on a secret mission to Beijing.
- In February 1972, Nixon paid a formal visits to China and, in a single stroke, erased much of the deep American animosity toward the Chinese communists regime, but in 1972 the United states and China began low-level diplomatic relations.
- In 1969, America and Soviet diplomats met in Helsinki, Finland, to begin talks on limiting nuclear weapons.
- In 1972, they produced the first Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALTI), which froze the nuclear missiles (ICBMs) of both sides at present levels.