During the Asian-African Conference in April 1955, Chinese Primer Zhou Enlai issued a statement to the effect that China was willing to sit down and enter into negotiations with the U.S. Government to discuss the question of relaxing tension in the Far East and especially the question of relaxing the tension in the Taiwan area. On the 13 of July, the U.S. responded under the mediation of Britain and India and proposed that the Chinese and American sides each send a representative of ambassadorial rank to hold talks in Geneva.


The Sino-American ambassadorial talks began in Geneva (later on in Warsaw) on 1 August 1955. The Chinese side was represented by Ambassador to Poland Mr. Wang Binnan (later on by the succeeding Ambassador to Poland Mr. Wang Guoquan) while the U.S. side was represented by Ambassador to Czechoslovakia Mr. Alexis Johnson. There were two items on agenda: 1. The return of civilians of both sides to their respective countries; and 2. Other practical matters at issue between the two sides. Under the second item, each side may raise questions directly involving Sino-U.S. relations which in its view ought to be discussed. On 10 September, both sides reached agreement on the first item: China and the United States recognize that civilians of each side in the other country are entitled to return, and declare that they have adopted and will further adopt appropriate measures so that their civilians can expeditiously exercise their right to return; and declare that they have adopted and will further adopt appropriate measures so that their civilians can expeditiously exercise their right to return; and the Indian and British Governments will be invited by China and United States respectively to assist Chinese and American civilians in their return. After agreement was reached on the first item of the agenda, the Chinese side proposed two subjects for discussion under the second item: U.S. embargo and the convocation of a meeting of Chinese and U.S. foreign ministers to discuss the relaxation of tension in the Taiwan area. But the American side wanted to discuss first the question of so-called ?renunciation of the use of force for state purposes?. However, because the United States mixed up the non-use of force in international relations between China and the United States with China?s internal affairs of resolving the Taiwan issue whether by peaceful means or by the use of force, and because the U.S. side insisted that both sides should reach agreement on the ?Mutual non-use of force? as a precondition for the discussion of the embargo issue, discussions on the second item of the agenda went into a deadlock. In order that the talks would not be stranded, the Chinese side, during the talks from September 1956 to December 1957, put forward successive draft announcements on the promotion of contacts and cultural exchange between the two peoples, on giving permission on an equal and reciprocal basis to correspondents of the other side to enter their respective countries for news coverage and on rendering each other judicial assistance. However, the American side rejected all these proposals of the Chinese side. On 12 December 1957 the American side sent a representative without ambassadorial rank to attend the 73rd meeting under the pretext that Ambassador Johnson had been transferred to another post, in an attempt to lower the level of the talks and resulting in suspension of the talks for nine months. On 30 June 1958, the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement calling on the U.S. Government to designate a representative of ambassadorial rank to resume the talks. On 28 July, the United States formally appointed its Ambassador to Poland Jacob Beam as the representative of the American side. On 15 September, the Sino-U.S. ambassadorial talks resumed in Warsaw. Later on, the talks went on and off for a long time. During the talks, the Chinese Government adhered to two principles: The Government of the United States of America undertakes to withdraw immediately all its armed forces from the Chinese territory of Taiwan and the Taiwan Strait area and dismantle all its military installations in Taiwan Province; the U.S. Government agrees to the signing of an agreement on the Five Principles of Peaceful Co-Existence between China and the United States. Owing to U.S. persistence in its practice of interfering in China?s internal affairs, no progress was made whatsoever on the key issue of easing and eliminating the tension in the Taiwan area. In the absence of diplomatic relations, the talks served only as a channel for keeping some contact and exchanging some views between the two countries. By February 1970, 136 meetings had been held in all.