Relations with the West improved markedly during Deng's term, although the People's Republic of China had gained a certain degree of recognition from the West in the late Mao era. In 1968, the government of Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau initiated negotiations with the People's Republic of China that led to the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Canada on October 13, 1970. Canada and China established resident diplomatic missions in 1971, and it led to a series of diplomatic successes in the west. The People's Republic of China joined the United Nations in 1971, replacing the international legitimacy previous held by the "Kuomintang" Government of the Republic of China on the island of Taiwan. In February 1972, US President Richard Nixon made an unprecedented eight-day visit to the People's Republic of China and met with Mao Zedong. On February 22, 1973, the United States and the PRC agreed to establish liaison offices. Although both sides intended to establish diplomatic relations quickly, this move was delayed until 1979 due to the Watergate scandal.