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UNIT 9 Chinese-American Relations: A History The Cold War to the Present The Cold War After the war, a new war of international tension, intrigue and political posturing, called the Cold War, forced the U. S. to scrap any thoughts of the false comforts of official isolation. It joined the United Nations and other international organizations, such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization , the International Monetary Fund , and the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade . It was determined to play a major, if not dominant role, in post war international affairs. The world was the stage for intense rivalry between the Communists, on one side, and democratic Capitalists on the other. It fostered close scrutiny of each other, as well as a brisk interchange of often fabricated and distorted propaganda between the polarized sides. It injected the fear that if one side blinked, a nuclear war would be triggered. The world, seemingly, was always on the verge of warfare. This environment placed the United States and China on opposite sides once the Communists took power in China in 1949. This constant friction jeopardized chances for meaningful political interaction and intercourse. This atmosphere of distrust and fear left little incentive for the different sides to talk seriously. By the end of the Second World War, or during the last year or two of the war, the world stage was being set for the Cold War. President Trumans attitude toward China hardened. American policy was explicit that only one China, Nationalist China led by Chiang Kai-shek, on the island of Taiwan, was the official China. The Americans made it abundantly clear, that Mao Tsetungs Communist Regime, on Chinese mainland, would not occupy Chinas permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council. | 
