A timeline of relations between China and US

A Cold War icebreaker by two former opponents leads to growing contact to solve thorny issues, and in a new century, efforts to forge a new type of major-power relationship

July 1971:

Secretary of State Henry Kissinger makes a secret trip to China.

February 1972:

President Richard Nixon spends eight days in China, meeting with Chairman Mao Zedong and signing the Shanghai Communique with Premier Zhou Enlai.

Jan. 1, 1979:

China and the US mutually grant full diplomatic recognition.

January 1979:

Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping visits Washington D.C. and initiates a series of high-level exchanges, which result in many bilateral agreements in the areas of science, technology, cultural exchange and trade.

August 1982:

China and the US publish the August 17 Communique, in which both sides reaffirm the statements made about the Taiwan question.

April 1984:

President Ronald Reagan pays a six-day official visit to China, becoming the first US president to visit the country while in office after the normalization of relations.

July 1985:

Chinese President Li Xiannian pays an official visit to the US, the first by a Chinese head of state.

February 1989:

President George Bush pays a two-day visit to China.

Oct. 26-

Nov. 3, 1997:

Chinese President Jiang Zemin visits the US and the two sides decide to implement the 1985 agreement on Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation.

June 1998:

President Bill Clinton visits China, during which he travels extensively and has direct interaction with the Chinese people.

October 2000:

President Clinton signs the US-China Relations Act, granting Beijing permanent normal trade relations with the US and paving the way for China to join the World Trade Organization.

October 2001:

President Jiang meets with President George W. Bush for the first time in Shanghai on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The countries reach consensus on developing bilateral relations and anti-terrorism cooperation.

October 2002:

President Jiang again meets with President Bush at his Texas ranch, marking their third meeting in a year.

December 2003:

Premier Wen Jiabao visits New York, Boston, and Washington, D.C. and has extensive interaction with American citizens.

November 2005:

President Bush pays an official visit to China, and the two countries reaffirm their intention to promote a constructive and cooperative relationship in the 21st century.

April 2006:

President Hu Jintao pays a state visit to the US and delivers a key speech on Sino-American ties.

November 2008:

President Hu visits the US at the invitation of President Bush to attend the G20 leaders' summit in Washington D.C.

June 2009:

The two countries hold the first China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Washington D.C.

November 2009:

President Barack Obama pays a state visit to China.

January 2011:

President Hu pays a state visit to the US

February 2012:

Vice-President Xi Jinping pays a five-day official visit to the US

June 2013:

Xi Jinping, now president of China, meets with President Obama for two days in Annenberg Retreat, California, in an effort to build a new type of major power relationship.

November 2014:

President Obama visits Beijing and meets with President Xi. The two countries agree to mutually issue 10-year multiple-entry visas for business travelers and tourists, and 5-year multiple-entry visas for students.

June 2015:

Fan changlong, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, visits the US and meets with Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter at the Pentagon.

(China Daily USA 09/24/2015 page10)