Sino-Soviet split
Ideological and geopolitical rift between China and the Soviet Union.
The Sino-Soviet split was the gradual worsening of relations between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) during the Cold War. It was primarily caused by divergences arising from their different interpretations and practical applications of Marxism–Leninism, influenced by their respective geopolitics. The split transformed the bipolar Cold War into a tri-polar Cold War and facilitated Sino-American rapprochement.
- start_year
- late 1950s
- field
- International relations, Cold War geopolitics
- key_actors
- People's Republic of China (Mao Zedong) and Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Nikita Khrushchev)
- known_for
- Ideological rivalry over Marxism–Leninism, de-Stalinization, and peaceful coexistence; border conflict; tri-polar geopolitics
Lore & Background
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Sino-Soviet debates about orthodox Marxism became specific disputes over the Soviet Union's policies of national de-Stalinization and international peaceful coexistence with the Western Bloc, which Chinese leader Mao Zedong decried as revisionism. China took a belligerent stance toward the Western world and rejected the Soviet policy of peaceful coexistence. China also resented the Soviet Union's growing ties with India due to factors such as the Sino-Indian border dispute, while the Soviet Union feared that Mao was unconcerned about the drastic consequences of nuclear warfare.
Reader's Guide
The Sino-Soviet split weakened the concept of monolithic communism, the Western perception that communist nations were ideologically and politically united. The rivalry also led to policies of triangular diplomacy and linkage. Both countries competed for leadership of world communism, with Eastern Bloc nations choosing sides. Despite rivalry, the USSR and China both continued to cooperate with North Vietnam during the Vietnam War into the 1970s.
Did You Know?
- The Soviet Union criticized Mao and China's practices during the Cultural Revolution.
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