An Old Vulcan Proverb

Last week President Joe Biden was asked about his read of China’s intention vis-à-vis Russian and Ukraine. He said that he did not see” China helping Russia with weapons and/or ammunition. This was, of course, after his Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken said that China was planning to do exactly that. And China, said that they were not considering it. Then for good measure Blinken threatened to have McDonalds leave China. It hardly seems like it, but it was just over half a century ago that the Vulcan proverb was born: Only Nixon could go to China. Which he did, after more than a year of secret meetings with Kissinger and his Chinese counterparts. Fifty-one years ago, Nixon and Zhou Enlai signed a document know as the Shanghai Communiqué. And for the past fifty-one years, it has guided American foreign policy towards the Peoples Republic of China…