1985: Reagan and Gorbatchev meet in Geneva
Jun 1, 2005 12:29:29 GMT -5
Post by mic on Jun 1, 2005 12:29:29 GMT -5
I wanted to share a very interesting evening with this board.
Twenty years ago, Mr. Gorbatchev and Mr. Reagan met in Geneva for what was going to be the beginning of a new area (“beginning of the beginning of the end” as is often said). Agreeing that the nuclear terror and the MAD policy was not something to continue, those both men decided to look for a new path.
I had the chance to meet Mr. Gorbatchev yesterday, along with Mr. McFarlane (National Security Adviser for Mr. Reagan) during the commemoration of the 1985 Geneva summit. A very interesting meeting indeed. I had the opportunity to speak with them, even if the talks with Mr. Gorbatchev needed an interpreter which made it tough to communicate. It was quite an emotional evening for some people, as a lot remembered the dark days of the Cold War.
The Geneva summit meant a lot for the end of the Cold War. The tension wasn’t ended and the US administration was worried about the new Russian leader, Gorbatchev. However, Gorbatchev’s nomination at the central committee was the beginning of a new area: the bi-polar international system was declining and the USSR was going to collapse. For the best?
How things have changed in twenty years! Russia is slowly building a democracy whereas the United States have new challenges and new challenger. How cope with this new context? What can we learn about the 1985 summit and those which followed? Those were the main concerns for the protagonists. Mr. Gorbatchev defended a new world order in which more was to be made to close the gab between North and South. Mr. McFarlane was more in the Bush junior tendency: how can the Occident promote democracy in the Middle East? It was interesting as these positions summarize pretty well the conflict or misunderstandings between some European countries and the US side. I don’t want to begin a new debate about the wrongs and the good things of the actual international relations. But I want to finish this short summary of the meeting by telling what Mr. Gorbatchev saw as essential for maintaining peace: communication, respect and trust between the world leaders.
Twenty years ago, Mr. Gorbatchev and Mr. Reagan met in Geneva for what was going to be the beginning of a new area (“beginning of the beginning of the end” as is often said). Agreeing that the nuclear terror and the MAD policy was not something to continue, those both men decided to look for a new path.
I had the chance to meet Mr. Gorbatchev yesterday, along with Mr. McFarlane (National Security Adviser for Mr. Reagan) during the commemoration of the 1985 Geneva summit. A very interesting meeting indeed. I had the opportunity to speak with them, even if the talks with Mr. Gorbatchev needed an interpreter which made it tough to communicate. It was quite an emotional evening for some people, as a lot remembered the dark days of the Cold War.
The Geneva summit meant a lot for the end of the Cold War. The tension wasn’t ended and the US administration was worried about the new Russian leader, Gorbatchev. However, Gorbatchev’s nomination at the central committee was the beginning of a new area: the bi-polar international system was declining and the USSR was going to collapse. For the best?
How things have changed in twenty years! Russia is slowly building a democracy whereas the United States have new challenges and new challenger. How cope with this new context? What can we learn about the 1985 summit and those which followed? Those were the main concerns for the protagonists. Mr. Gorbatchev defended a new world order in which more was to be made to close the gab between North and South. Mr. McFarlane was more in the Bush junior tendency: how can the Occident promote democracy in the Middle East? It was interesting as these positions summarize pretty well the conflict or misunderstandings between some European countries and the US side. I don’t want to begin a new debate about the wrongs and the good things of the actual international relations. But I want to finish this short summary of the meeting by telling what Mr. Gorbatchev saw as essential for maintaining peace: communication, respect and trust between the world leaders.