Sept 11-17, 1973, French President Georges Pompidou visited China. He is the first French president to visit China, and also the first Western head of state to visit China. The “Sino-French Communiqué” was published at the end of the visit and the two governments expressed the common desire to further develop bilateral relations. The two sides agreed to study the possibility of the development of economic relations and to strengthen exchanges in technology, industry and so on. The two sides decided to sign a maritime agreement and strengthen cooperation in air transport. They also reached an agreement on Liaoyang chemical projects with a total value of 1.2 billion francs.

Chairman Mao Zedong met with French President Georges Pompidou in Beijing on Sept 13, 1973.