Pierre Trudeau
China

Trudeau established Canadian diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China before the United States did in 1979, and went on an official visit to Beijing. On 10 February 1969, the government announced its wish to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic, and Trudeau was mortified when the Chinese refused to respond at first, which made him look foolish. Unknown to Trudeau, the Chinese diplomatic corps had been so thoroughly purged during the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution that the Chinese Foreign Ministry barely functioned by early 1969. On 19 February 1969, the Chinese finally responded and agreed to open talks in Stockholm on establishing diplomatic relations, which began on 3 April 1969. Trudeau expected the negotiations to be a mere formality, but relations were not finally established until October 1970. The delay was largely because the Chinese insisted that Canada have no relations whatsoever with "the Chiang Kai-shek gang" as they called the Kuomintang regime in Taiwan and agree to support the Chinese position that Taiwan was a part of the People's Republic, a position that caused problems on the Canadian side as it implied Canadian support for China's viewpoint that it had the right to take Taiwan by force into the People's Republic. On 10 October 1970, a statement was issued by the External Affairs department in Ottawa saying: "The Chinese government reaffirms that Taiwan is an inalienable part of the territory of the People's Republic of China. The Canadian government takes note of the Chinese position". After the statement was issued, China and Canada established diplomatic relations on the same day. The so-called "Canadian formula" under which a nation "takes note" of the Chinese viewpoint that Taiwan is part of the People's Republic has been often copied by other nations that have established diplomatic relations with Beijing, most notably the United States in 1979. In October 1973, Trudeau visited Beijing to meet Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, where Trudeau was hailed as "old friend", a term of high approval in China.

In 1976, Trudeau, succumbing to pressure from the Chinese government, issued an order barring Taiwan from participating as China in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, although technically it was a matter for the IOC. His action strained relations with the United States – from President Ford, future President Carter and the press – and subjected Canada to international condemnation and shame.
oulipo:avoid_letter[o]