Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Putting it all on the table, ping-pong diplomacy and the thawing of Cold War tensions.

Connie Sweeris, Ping-Pong Diplomat | Arts & Culture | Smithsonian Magazine

Image via Smithsonian via AP

... at the invitation of the Chinese government, a nine-person United States table tennis team, along with their spouses, team officials and a few selected journalists, visited China for a series of exhibition matches. So-called Ping-Pong diplomacy was born, helping to set the stage for President Richard Nixon’s visit in February 1972. “No one was envisioning that this dramatic trip to China would be a precursor to re-establishing diplomatic relations,” said Steve Bull, director of government relations for the U.S. Olympic Committee and a former Nixon aide ...
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...