Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to set foot in China on Feb. 21, 1972. The week-long ice-breaking tour is one of the world’s most significant diplomatic milestones in the 20th Century. 

Chairman Mao Zedong meets former US president Richard Nixon at Zhongnanhai in Beijing on Feb 21, 1972.

The visit in 1972 marked the first visit by a U.S. president to the People’s Republic of China. It ended twenty-five years of estrangement. The trip was also a crucial step in facilitating the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1979. 

Throughout the week, Nixon and his most senior advisors engaged in substantive discussions with China. They met Chairman Mao Zedong and toured schools, factories and hospitals in Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou, with a large American press corps in tow. Two giant pandas were also given to the U.S. as a symbol of friendship.