University of Virginia Library

Mark Selden

History Scholar Denounces Nixon's Chinese Policy

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By TOM SAUNDERS

Since 1960 when he began his
graduate work in Chinese studies at Yale,
Mark Selden, Chinese History Ph.D., has
studied people from a considerable
distance.

But a month and a half ago Mr. Selden
entered the People's Republic of China
on a "friendship mission" initiated by the
Chinese Government.

Traveling with thirty other members
of a group known as the Concerned Asian
Scholars, Mr. Selden worked in a farm
commune, lived in a factory co-ed
dormitory, walked the streets of China's
high industrial duties and had a five-hour
interview with Chou En-lai.

When asked if he thought Mao
Tse-Tung's brand of Communism was
working in the People's Republic of
China, he answered, "The impression one
takes away from China is overwhelmingly
one of a tremendous sense of purpose, a
sense of energy about fulfilling goals, a
very clear sense about what they (the
Chinese) are building and trying to build."

"They don't think they've arrived, it's
not Utopia, but they have a very sharp
sense of purpose and dedication about
what they're doing," he said, "which
really stands in extraordinary contrast to
our youth in America who perhaps more
than other classes are looking around very
hard for anything that seems
meaningful," he explained.

Mr. Selden was at the University
Wednesday and yesterday, talking about,
impressions from his trip to China.
Wednesday he spoke on "Beyond Peking:
Asia and the Nixon Doctrine."

President Nixon's policies on Asia and
Indochina are the subject of a soon to be
published book co-authored by Mr.
Selden en-titled Open Secret: The
Kissinger-Nixon Doctrine in Asia.

Mr. Seldon's opinions of Nixon's Asia
policies are not very high.

"Mr. Nixon went to Peking for several
reasons," he said, "some of them, of
course, are narrowly politically
opportunistic."

"He went to win the next election by
presenting himself as the president of
peace rather than the president of the
Indochina War," he said.

"Of course, he is the president of the
Indochina war, not that he made it, but
that he took it over and after four years
it's his war," Mr. Seldon continued.

"He also went to China to mask the
overwhelming defeat the U.S. was in the

process of suffering," he said, "that is,
the U.S. had placed a great deal of its
prestige over the last twenty years and
five presidents in isolating and crushing
the People's Republic of China."

"The U.S. has lost its power to force
other countries into line, due mainly to
the Indochina War and to the economic
crisis," he said.

"He also went to Peking to bargain
with the Chinese leaders on the
Indochina War," he said.

When asked what effect the trip had
on Sino-American relations, he answered,
"Nothing Mr. Nixon did in Peking was a
break from the old policies, and his trip
had little effect on the U.S. stance toward
China."

Regarding the Vietnam war Mr. Selden
said, "China is not going to make any
concessions to the U.S. Peking didn't
alter Nixon's commitment to a military
victory or genocide in Vietnam."

"What I mean by genocide is the aerial
destruction of all the cities of North
Vietnam," he explained.

"Nixon, at present, has the same
options open to him that he's had all
along," he said.

"He can bomb the Red River dikes, he
can level Hanoi and Haiphong, he can use
nuclear weapons on the Ho Chi Min Trail
or he can order a mass infusion of ground
troops."

"This being an election year, the last
option is the most unlikely," Mr. Selden
said.

"Of course, he has always had the
option to withdraw," he continued.

"The actions of the American people
for the next few weeks and months will
determine which of those options Mr.
Nixon choses," Mr. Selden concluded.