VOA标准英语2012--Nixon's China Visit Marked Turning Point in Sino-American Relations

Nixon's China Visit Marked Turning Point in Sino-American Relations

Nixon's trip to China was such a grand drama on the world stage that years later, it, indeed, became an opera.
The historical record is much simpler:
He arrived on February 21, 1972 at a time when the two countries were far apart diplomatically. He had only one meeting with Chinese leader Mao Zedong. But near the end of his visit, Mr. Nixon remarked that it was “the week that changed the world.”
“Usually that’s hyperbole and spin and pumping up an occasion. In this case, it was true. It really did change the world. We [i.e., the United States] had been at war [in Vietnam] and [China was] totally isolated² -- the two countries -- one with the most people, the other with the most power. And this log jam was broken,” said retired³ diplomat¹ Winston Lord, who traveled with the president.
The two countries disagreed on many issues, but they shared a common concern -- the Soviet⁴ Union.
The late Zhang Hanzhi was Mao’s interpreter during Mr. Nixon's visit.
“The real threat to China was from the north and its vast border with the Soviet Union. And Chairman Mao would often talk about the millions of [Soviet] troops along China’s border. And while the Soviet Union and the U.S. were rivals, they could frequently find room for compromise. China’s relations were tense -- both with the Soviet Union and the United States,” Hanzhi said.
Common interests helped the two countries to find common ground. And Sino-American relations expanded over the years, with the formalizing of diplomatic ties in the late 1970s and the opening of China’s economy under former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping.
Brent Scowcroft was Mr. Nixon’s military assistant.
“It was a narrow bilateral⁵ discussion and relationship, but it served to get us used to talking to each other and to get to know each other and it went very well. But with the collapse⁶ of the Cold War and the Soviet Union, the glue of that relationship fell apart,” Scowcroft said.
Now, mutual⁷ military concerns, human rights, trade and a host of pressing issues dominate relations between the world’s two biggest economies.

1 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

2 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

3 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

4 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

5 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

6 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

7 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。