Wilson Center Digital Archive

Sino-Soviet Split, 1960-1984

Documents on the growing division and worsening relations between China and the Soviet Union from 1960 onward. For other collections on Sino-Soviet relations, see Making of the Sino-Soviet Alliance, 1945-1950; Sino-Soviet Alliance, 1950-1959; Sino-Soviet Border Conflict, 1969; and Sino-Soviet Rapprochement, 1985-1989. (Image, Mao and Khrushchev, 1958)

June 08, 1962

Minutes of the Meeting between Vice Minister Zhang Hanfu and the Ambassador of the Soviet Union to China Chervonenko

Zhang Hanfu and Ambassador Chervonenko debate the massive flight of Chinese nationals from Xinjiang to Soviet Kazakhstan.
June 19, 1962

Fifth Official Meeting Between the Delegation of the Albanian Labor Party and the Delegation of the Chinese Communist Party

Albanian leaders Hysni Kapo and Ramiz Alia meet with a Chinese delegation to discuss industrialization in Communist countries, specificallyAlbania's five-year plan. The Albanians complain about being excluded from international meetings of the socialist countries. The Chinese update the Albanians on their position of supporting Jiang Jieshi over the "Two Chinas" objective of the United States and their relations with other countries throughout Asia, while encouraging the Albanians to reach out to the Muslim nations of Africa.
June 21, 1962

Cable from the Work Team of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Public Security to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Party Committee and the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Public Security

The Chinese Foreign Ministry and Public Security Ministry claim success in uncovering evidence of illegal Soviet activities in Xinjiang.
June 25, 1962

Reply to the Soviet Government Memorandum of 7 June and the Oral Supplementary Statement of 11 June (Draft)

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs the Soviet government that its accusations against China of illegal migration are groundless.
June 26, 1962

Transcript of a Meeting between Vice Minister Ji Pengfei and the Ambassador of the Soviet Union to China Stepan V. Chervonenko

Ji Pengfei and Stepan Chervonenko spar over the Soviet Union's handling of the peoples who crossed into the USSR from Xinjiang.
June 27, 1962

Memorandum of Conversation between First Vice Premier Hysni Kapo and Albanian Labor Party Politburo Member Ramiz Alia with PRC Premier Zhou Enlai
June 29, 1962

Memorandum of Conversation, Albanian Labor Party Delegation with Mao Zedong

The delegation from the Albanian Labour Party meets with Chairman Mao Zedong, where both parties express disapproval toward Krushchev's policies of De-Stalinization. The Albanian delegates reaffirm their belief in the general Communist party of the USSR, despite Krushchev's actions.
July 07, 1962

Investigation of the Automobile of the Soviet Consulate

Consulate personnel are barred from leaving downtown Yining, leading to a violation of local government rules and an investigation of a Soviet official.
July 09, 1962

Cable from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, 'Please Report on the Situation of the Investigation of the Automobiles of the Soviet Consulates'

The Chinese Foreign Ministry asks for information on the movements of Soviet owned automobiles in Xinjiang.
July 11, 1962

Cable from the Xinjiang Foreign Affairs Office, 'Re: Situation of the Investigation of the Automobiles of the Soviet Consulates'

The Xinjiang Foreign Affairs Office follows up on an order to monitor the movements of Soviet automobiles.
August, 1962

Draft Response to the Memorandum from the Soviet Union dated 9 August

Premier Zhou requests a response to a Soviet memorandum regarding a blockade of the border, removing Soviet business representatives in Xinjiang, and allowing White Russians to leave Xinjiang.
August 09, 1962

Minutes of Vice Minister Huang Zhen’s Talk with Nikolai Mesyatse, Chargé d’affaires Ad Interim of the Soviet Embassy in Beijing

Huang Zhen, Mesyastev, and Xu discuss the flight of Xinjiang residents to the Soviet Union and controversy surrounding the Soviet government's inconsistencies in dealing with illegal border crossings.
August 10, 1962

Statement of the Soviet Government concerning the Flight of Xinjiang Residents to the Soviet Union as Delivered to Comrade Huang Zhen by Mesyatsev, Chargé d’affaires Ad Interim of the Soviet Embassy in China (Translation)

The situation on the Xinjiang border has stabilized due to Soviet and Chinese actions, and the Soviet Union demands that China recognize the imbalance in efforts to halt the border crossings.
August 11, 1962

Cable from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, 'Text of the Memorandum from the Soviet Union dated 9 August and Request for Proposals'

The Chinese government informs the Soviet Union that it intends to reply to a recent cable regarding illegal border crossings.
August 23, 1962

Report and Request for Instructions on the Reply to the Memorandum Submitted by the Government of the Soviet Union on the Massive Illegal Exodus of Residents from Xinjiang dated 9 August

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs delivers a draft reply to a Soviet Union memorandum, as requested by Zhou, regarding illegal border crossings.
September 27, 1962

Cable from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, 'Please Report on the Specifics of the Inflammatory Materials Carried in Soviet Newspapers and Broadcasted on Soviet Radio'

Radio broadcasts and newspapers report on weakening Uyghur culture, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs requests information regarding these incitements.
September 29, 1962

Cable from the Xinjiang Foreign Affairs Department, 'The Actual Situation of Seditious Material against China in Soviet Newspapers and Journals'

After the publication of seditious materials in Soviet Kazakhstan, the Xinjiang Foreign Affairs Department updates the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on information related to the materials.
October 22, 1962

Soviet Memorandum on the Sino-Indian Border Issue

The Soviet Union outlines its stance toward the ongoing Sino-Indian border war, including its policy of selling arms to India.
October 22, 1962

Memorandum of Conversation between Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Hanfu and Soviet Ambassador Stepan Chervonenko

Stepan Chervonenko and Zhang Hanfu discuss the ongoing border dispute between India and China, and Chervonenko presents a Soviet memorandum outlining the USSR's stance toward the war.
October 25, 1962

Cable from the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 'Memorandum from the Soviet Union on the Sino-Indian Border Dispute and the Sale of Aircrafts to India'

The Chinese Foreign Ministry informed all of its embassies and Charge d’Affaires about the Soviet Memorandum on the Sino-Indian Dispute and emphasized the necessity to make clear that India was the invader, not China.