Mao and the Sino-Soviet Split, 19591973: A New History

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Description

In the twenty-first century, students of Cold War history are fortunate to have the fruits of several major works on the Sino-Soviet split by European and American scholars. What is lacking in English literature, however, is a book based on international documentation, especially Chinese archival documents that tell the story from the Chinese perspective.

Based on archival materials from several countriesparticularly Chinaand more than twenty years of research on the subject, two prominent Chinese historians, Danhui Li and Yafeng Xia, offer a comprehensive look at the SinoSoviet split from 1959, when visible cracks appeared in the Sino-Soviet alliance, to 1973, when Chinas foreign policy changed from an alliance with the Soviet Union to oppose the United States to aligning with the United States to oppose the Soviet Union. Mao and the Sino-Soviet Split, 19591973: A New History is a reevaluation of the history of the Sino-Soviet split and offers the first comprehensive account of it from a Chinese perspective.

This book, together with its prequel Mao and the SinoSoviet Partnership, 19451959: A New History, is important because any changes in Sino-Soviet relations at the time affected, and to a great extent determined, the fate of the socialist bloc. More importantly, it directly impacted and transformed the international political situation during the Cold War. These two books promise to be a reevaluation of the history of the Sino-Soviet alliance from its birth to its demise. These fascinating books will be a crucial resource for all those interested in the topic and will stand as the definitive work on the Sino-Soviet alliance for years to come.

Reviews

Danhui Li and Yafeng Xia effectively use numerous materials in several languages, including from provincial archives in China, to place the Sino-Soviet relationship at the center of key moments in PRC history, including the turn toward the United States. This is like reading MacFarquhar with archives. -- Austin Jersild, Old Dominion University

An essential resource for all scholars of the Cold War and of the demise of the Sino-Soviet Friendship, this new book seeks to upend the prevailing scholarly explanations of the famous Sino-Soviet Split. Armed with new Russian and Chinese data, Danhui Li and Yafeng Xia offer a more nuanced explanation of important Sino-Soviet events and, in so doing, argue that Chinas relationship with the Soviet Union was crucially important to the development of Maos Cultural Revolution.

-- Deborah Kaple, Princeton University

Authored by two leading historians of China's foreign relations, this meticulously researched work of scholarship brings new depth to our understanding of the underlying causes of the Sino-Soviet split. Danhui Li and Yafeng Xia tell a gripping story, peppered with fascinating details from new archival revelations. This study is a must-read for scholars and students of Cold War history.

-- Sergey Radchenko, Cardiff University

No bilateral relationship was more consequential in Cold War history than the conflict-ridden Sino-Soviet alliance. This carefully researched and insightfully argued book by two of the worlds most accomplished experts on the subject is a must read for anyone interested in diplomatic history, international security, or the international relations of East Asia.

-- Thomas Christensen, Columbia University
The collapse of the Sino-Soviet alliance was a salient event in Cold War history, as it not only changed the orientation or even essence of the global Cold War but also buried international communism as a 20th-century phenomenon. This book by Li and Xia, with the support of extensive and highly original research, offers the hitherto best study on why and how Beijing and Moscow turned from brothers-in-arms into deadly enemies. It is extraordinarily revealing and strongly recommended. -- Jian Chen, New York University/NYU-Shanghai

Author Bio

Danhui Li is professor of history at East China Normal University.

Yafeng Xia is professor of history at Long Island University.