Chapter 1. Introduction: Canada’s Response to China’s Increasing Role in the World

The international position of the People’s Republic of China has undeniably changed since Canada became one of the first developed countries to recognize it, in 1970 (even before the People’s Republic was admitted to the United Nations). When Mao Zedong declared on October 1, 1949, that China had finally “stood up” in the world, he had underestimated his country’s potential to rise internationally. In 1949, China’s ability to stand up implied its ideological move away from capitalism as the b..