(2 of 2)
At banquets, anti-Soviet remarks burst out from all sides. During the welcoming dinner, Huang declared in his official toast: "Social imperialism [meaning the U.S.S.R.] is feverishly expanding its armaments, preparing for war and engaging in expansion and aggression everywhere with the aim of seizing world hegemony." Replied Brzezinski: "Only those aspiring to dominate others have any reason to fear the further development of American-Chinese relations." Then he downed a glass of fiery mao-tai.
At the final banquet, Brzezinski delighted his guests by reciting an anti-Soviet poem written by Mao Tse-tung in 1963. As the officials and their wives chanted along with him in Chinese, Brzezinski read (in English):
Ants on the locust tree assume a
great-nation swagger And Mayflies lightly plot to topple
the giant tree...
Seize the day, seize the hour The four seas are rising, Clouds and waters raging The five continents are rocking, Wind and thunder roaring Our force is irresistible, away with
all pests.
On his arrival in Peking, Brzezinski had toasted "friendship." In his final toast, he lauded "friendship and normalization" and called the combination "vital." It was a clue to U.S. intentions that no Chinese could have missed. With the two countries still at odds over Taiwan, there was no sign that the good will generated by the trip had moved them any closer to establishing normal diplomatic relations. Still, that seemed to matter less last week than it has in some time.