Episode 32 - PING-PONG DIPLOMACY AND THE BEGINNINGS OF THE SINO-AMERICAN THAW (JAN-JUL 1971)

Despite no military engagements with the Soviets for 2 years, continued pressure on the northern border and US stepping up attacks on Laos and Cambodia make Mao and company consider a new tactic: partially opening up the country to engagement with the West via sports competitions and friendship tours. This culminates in a secret meeting that, months prior, would be unthinkable: the meeting of Premier Zhou Enlai and US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.