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COMMUNIST CHINA'S INTERNATIONAL POSTURE – NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE ESTIMATE, NOVEMBER TWELVE, NINETEEN SEVENTY. This declassified Central Intelligence Agency assessment was prepared for senior policymakers during a period of shifting diplomatic activity in East Asia. It appears in the public archive of United States intelligence documents. The record was released through a Freedom of Information Act request, identified in the Black Vault as document CI01966. The declassification authority was the Director of Central Intelligence, and the material was made publicly available on the Internet archive on May ninth, twenty twenty‑two. The following is the text of the estimate as it appears in the original file. The document begins with an approval notice and a list of contributing agencies, then proceeds to a brief overview and a series of conclusions labeled A through G. “APPROVED FOR RELEASE. DATE: MAY S009. NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE ESTIMATE NUMBER 13‑7‑70. COMMUNIST CHINA’S INTERNATIONAL POSTURE. CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY. UNITED STATES INTELLIGENCE BOARD. DATE: NOVEMBER TWELVE, NINETEEN SEVENTY. THE FOLLOWING INTELLIGENCE ORGANIZATIONS WERE INVOLVED IN THE PREPARATION OF THIS ESTIMATE: THE CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY, THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY, THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE, THE DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS, THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, THE DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE, THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE, THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF ENERGY, THE DIRECTOR OF THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION, AND OTHER RELEVANT OFFICES. CONTENT: FOREIGN POLICY: SOME PRINCIPLES AND PRIORITIES. COMMUNIST CHINA’S INTERNATIONAL POSTURE. China’s return to active diplomacy raises new questions about the direction of its foreign policy. After four years in which the internal preoccupations of the Cultural Revolution thoroughly averted foreign relations, Beijing is now moving to repair its international image and to exploit new opportunities. In attempting to estimate how China will play its new role in international politics over the next year, this paper examines Peking’s options in terms of those policy factors which are most likely to remain constant and those which are subject to greater variation in response to domestic or external events. It must be acknowledged at the outset that we have remarkably little information on the decision‑making processes in Peking. Though considerable error is possible, as in the past sudden shifts and turns in Chinese policies will probably continue to surprise us. In the broader perspective of long‑range goals and basic capabilities, this paper attempts to set useful guidelines on the course that China is likely to follow in adopting its stance toward the outside world. CONCLUSIONS: A. With the waning of the radical and frenetic phase of the Cultural Revolution, Beijing has substantially improved its earlier diplomatic position and is moving to compete for…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

CIA Communist China's International Posture – National Intelligence Estimate

◆ BLUF — The short version

COMMUNIST CHINA'S INTERNATIONAL POSTURE – NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE ESTIMATE, NOVEMBER TWELVE, NINETEEN SEVENTY. This declassified Central Intelligence Agency assessment was prepared for senior policymakers during a period of shifting diplomatic activity in East Asia. It appears in the public archive of United States intelligence documents.

Date: AUG 6 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

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What was CIA Communist China's International Posture – National Intelligence Estimate about?: COMMUNIST CHINA'S INTERNATIONAL POSTURE – NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE ESTIMATE, NOVEMBER TWELVE, NINETEEN SEVENTY. This declassified Central Intelligence Agency assessment was prepared for senior policymakers during a period of shifting diplomatic activity in East Asia. It appears in the public archive of United States intelligence documents.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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