Foreign Policy in the 70's
Human Rights Policy
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter created the Human Rights Policy. This policy was committed to promoting human rights- such as the freedoms and liberties listed in the Deceleration of Independence and the Bill of Rights.Using this principle, he cut off military aid to Argentina and Brazil, countries that had good relations with the United States but tortured or imprisoned thousands of their own citizens. He followed up this action by establishing a Bureau of Human Rights in the State Department.
President Nixon was committed to peace and focused on three major foreign policy issues: ending the Vietnam War (1959-75), opening relations with China, and improving relations with the Soviet Union by inaugurating a dialogue on disarmament.
China- In 1972, Nixon sent Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on a secret mission to Peking, China, to decide whether the Chinese leaders would welcome a presidential visit. They agreed. Then on July 15, 1971, Nixon stunned the entire world by announcing that he had been invited to visit China and had accepted. The Russians had been told in advance that no matter what the United States might do with China, they need not be concerned.
In China Nixon met with the old Chinese revolutionary leaders, Mao Tse-tung and Chou En-lai. The major agreements that emerged from the talks dealt with Vietnam, Taiwan, and the Soviet Union. With respect to the former, the final statement suggested that the U. S. would reduce its military presence in Taiwan if China would decrease her support for the North Vietnamese. As for the Soviets, it was agreed that the United States would not permit the military of Asia by the Russians. Thus, a new alliance aimed at deterring Russian expansion or aggression was created.
The Soviet Union
On May 20, 1972, Nixon traveled to Moscow, the capital of the former Soviet Union. The most important item on the agenda was arms reduction. Negotiating directly with Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leader, Nixonsucceeded in finalizing an agreement that had been worked out earlier by the technical experts. Known as the Antiballistic Missile Defense System Treaty (ABM), it was the first arms control agreement of the nuclear age. It provided that both sides would reduce missile size and fleets. It was only a beginning and was to be followed by numerous future agreements.
The Vietnam War
In October 1972 the North Vietnamese for the first time offered terms that were considered a reasonable basis for meaningful negotiations. The plan called for the withdrawal of U.S. forces, an exchange of prisoners, and no further infiltration of the South by the North. Nixon wanted to accept these terms, but he could not do so without the consent of the South Vietnamese government. When the plan was laid before South Vietnamese president Nguyen Van Thieu, he objected. He was frightened because the plan did not call for the withdrawal of all North Vietnamese forces already in South Vietnam. Nixon pointed out that this was a practical impossibility, but he attempted to reassure Thieu, president of South Vietnam (1967-75) with a guarantee that the United States would not permit a Communist takeover of South Vietnam.
Meanwhile, as the negotiators attempted to work out the final details, it became clear that the North Vietnamese were going to stall in authorizing a cease-fire based upon their own proposal. Nixon and Kissinger were furious, and Nixon decided that his only option was to use force to persuade the enemy to bargain in a more reasonable fashion. Hence he ordered an intensive bombing campaign of North Vietnam during the Christmas holiday period. The president was harshly criticized for this but it worked. In January 1973 the North Vietnamese signaled their willingness to get on with the negotiations. Thereafter, terms were quickly agreed upon and the cease-fire was declared in effect on January 27, 1973.
China- In 1972, Nixon sent Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on a secret mission to Peking, China, to decide whether the Chinese leaders would welcome a presidential visit. They agreed. Then on July 15, 1971, Nixon stunned the entire world by announcing that he had been invited to visit China and had accepted. The Russians had been told in advance that no matter what the United States might do with China, they need not be concerned.
In China Nixon met with the old Chinese revolutionary leaders, Mao Tse-tung and Chou En-lai. The major agreements that emerged from the talks dealt with Vietnam, Taiwan, and the Soviet Union. With respect to the former, the final statement suggested that the U. S. would reduce its military presence in Taiwan if China would decrease her support for the North Vietnamese. As for the Soviets, it was agreed that the United States would not permit the military of Asia by the Russians. Thus, a new alliance aimed at deterring Russian expansion or aggression was created.
The Soviet Union
On May 20, 1972, Nixon traveled to Moscow, the capital of the former Soviet Union. The most important item on the agenda was arms reduction. Negotiating directly with Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leader, Nixonsucceeded in finalizing an agreement that had been worked out earlier by the technical experts. Known as the Antiballistic Missile Defense System Treaty (ABM), it was the first arms control agreement of the nuclear age. It provided that both sides would reduce missile size and fleets. It was only a beginning and was to be followed by numerous future agreements.
The Vietnam War
In October 1972 the North Vietnamese for the first time offered terms that were considered a reasonable basis for meaningful negotiations. The plan called for the withdrawal of U.S. forces, an exchange of prisoners, and no further infiltration of the South by the North. Nixon wanted to accept these terms, but he could not do so without the consent of the South Vietnamese government. When the plan was laid before South Vietnamese president Nguyen Van Thieu, he objected. He was frightened because the plan did not call for the withdrawal of all North Vietnamese forces already in South Vietnam. Nixon pointed out that this was a practical impossibility, but he attempted to reassure Thieu, president of South Vietnam (1967-75) with a guarantee that the United States would not permit a Communist takeover of South Vietnam.
Meanwhile, as the negotiators attempted to work out the final details, it became clear that the North Vietnamese were going to stall in authorizing a cease-fire based upon their own proposal. Nixon and Kissinger were furious, and Nixon decided that his only option was to use force to persuade the enemy to bargain in a more reasonable fashion. Hence he ordered an intensive bombing campaign of North Vietnam during the Christmas holiday period. The president was harshly criticized for this but it worked. In January 1973 the North Vietnamese signaled their willingness to get on with the negotiations. Thereafter, terms were quickly agreed upon and the cease-fire was declared in effect on January 27, 1973.
T. Hutson