Finally, in the late 1960s, Mao was no closer to the dream of unification with Taiwan than he had been in 1949. In fact, he was farther from it. The Republic of China was firmly allied with the United States, and Taiwan boasted the second-highest standard of living in Asia. Mao realized that he needed a relationship with America to draw closer to the island. The road to unification ran through Washington, not Taipei.
