Word: chernenko
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Chernenko regime began last week, workmen dismantled the enormous portraits of the late leader and took down the red and black bunting that had shrouded the Soviet capital during four days of mourning. The hammer-and-sickle flags above the Kremlin were raised again to full staff. Most dead Soviet leaders vanish quickly into history. It was not clear how much of Andropov's legacy would survive the transition. For the moment, the watchword appeared to be continuity. Said a senior British diplomat...
...Reagan Administration did its best last week to suggest that the changing of the guard in the Kremlin was an opportunity for the superpowers to thaw their frigid relations. After his meeting with Konstantin Chernenko, Vice President George Bush declared that the two men had agreed on the need "to place our relationship upon a more constructive path." He added, "The mood was good, the spirit was excellent. It signals that we can go from there...
...Chernenko was considerably less ebullient. In his debut as General Secretary, he stressed the Soviet Union's determination to maintain its military strength and denounced Western leaders for their "reckless actions" that threaten the strategic balance. But American officials chose to stress that Chernenko had refrained from singling out the U.S. or Ronald Reagan by name and that he had reiterated the Soviet Union's preference for solving international disputes by negotiation...
This debate was well under way before the change in the Kremlin, but Chernenko's accession may eventually strengthen the hand of those in the Administration arguing for a new initiative...
...there much reason to think that the Soviets share the eagerness of some in the Administration for a deal this year. In maneuvering for their places in the post-Andropov order, Chernenko and his comrades have presumably had to make promises to the military, beginning well before the moderate new sounds began coming out of Washington. Besides, in their obsession with continuity, the last thing the Kremlin will want to convey is any impression that the death of its leader will be accompanied by a change of policy that its adversaries can exploit...