ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the extent of the impact of the internal struggle on China's foreign policy during the Cultural Revolution. Some analysts see little fundamental change in foreign policy during the Cultural Revolution. While others maintain either that foreign policy actions during the upheaval were essentially influenced by the dissension and rivalry of top leaders at home or that events abroad had triggered the domestic dissension. The chapter covers a wide range of aspects of China's foreign policy. Some items deal with the management of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with particular reference to the period when the radicals controlled the ministry during the upheaval. Some of the entries present the position that Red Guard excesses against foreign nations in 1966-67 were not a part of China's foreign policy. There seems to be some agreement, however, on the negative impact of the Cultural Revolution on China's prestige and influence abroad.
