China's external relations were unpredictable.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (May/June 2021). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1-4] e.g. 'Mao wanted to make Tibet part of China and remove India's influence.'
2. [1-4] 'Negotiations were held with India and an agreement signed in 1951 recognising China's rule of Tibet.'
3. [1-4] 'In 1954 India and China signed the Panchsheel Treaty (Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence) agreeing non-interference in each other's affairs.'
4. [1-4] 'There were border skirmishes from 1959 when India gave asylum to the Dalai Lama.'
5. [1-4] 'India started a Forward Policy to hinder Chinese patrols.'
6. [1-4] 'In 1962 there was war between China and India over the Himalayan border when Chinese troops advanced.'
7. [1-4] 'The war ended in 1962 when China withdrew its troops.'
8. [1-4] 'Relations between the two countries were poor for the rest of the 1960s, with more clashes in 1967.'
9. [4-5] e.g. 'The main reason is that China sees Taiwan as a threat while it exists as an independent state. It was where the Nationalists fled to after the Civil War. It called itself the Republic of China, so it sees itself the proper and legal China. This is something that the Communists in China cannot accept. They believe that it should be part of their China.'
10. [2-3] e.g. 'Taiwan has powerful armed forces. The USA sold them arms.'
11. [2-3] 'The USA could use Taiwan as a base if it wanted to invade China.'
12. [2-3] 'China saw Taiwan as a threat.'
13. [2-3] 'At first, many countries continued to recognise the Nationalists in Taiwan as the rightful rulers of China.'
14. [4-6] e.g. 'I think this is generally right. Relations with the USA were not very good to begin with, but they improved after 1970. Nixon wanted to split China and Russia and thought that better relations with China would be a good way of doing it. At the same time, China's relations with the USSR had been getting worse. The Cultural Revolution made relations even worse and there were border clashes. China did not want to be isolated and so began to improve its relations with the USA. It also wanted to trade with the USA. In 1971, Henry Kissinger visited China and in 1972, a trade agreement was reached. Relations continued to be good through the 1970s.'
15. [4-6] OR e.g. 'I disagree with this. In the 1950s and 1960s, relations with the USA were poor. They supported different sides in the Korean War and then in the Vietnam War. At the same time, relations with the USSR were good. The USSR made a massive loan to China and it helped with China expanding its heavy industry. Soviet experts were sent to help China's first Five-Year Plan. However, soon after Khrushchev became leader of the USSR, things did not go so well.'
16. [2-3] e.g. 'The USA and China supported different sides in the Korean and Vietnam Wars.'
17. [2-3] 'The USA at first recognised and supported Taiwan.'
18. [2-3] 'In 1950, the USSR and China signed a treaty of friendship and alliance.'
19. [2-3] 'The USSR sent experts to China with its Five-Year Plan.'
20. [2-3] 'Relations between the USSR and China grew worse when Khrushchev and Mao started to disagree over their ideas.'
21. [2-3] 'When the USSR had problems in Afghanistan, China supported the Afghan rebels.'
22. [2-3] 'In the 1970s, China and the USA reached an agreement over trade.'
23. [2-3] 'Relations between China and the USA were much better in the 1970s.'