Story: Asia and New Zealand

New Zealand Prime Minister Robert Muldoon made his first visit to China in 1976. His meeting with Chairman Mao Zedong was largely symbolic, as the 82-year-old Mao was too frail to engage in any serious diplomatic conversations. He died four months later. The more important negotiations occurred between Muldoon and Chinese Premier Hua Guofeng. It was the first visit by a New Zealand prime minister and followed the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries in 1972.