Word: gromyko
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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This year, by contrast, Gromyko was arriving not only to deliver a major address at the U.N. outlining the Soviet Union's view of world affairs, a matter of growing concern to other nations as the result of seemingly immobilized leadership within the Kremlin. He was also scheduled to meet at the White House on Friday with Ronald Reagan, thus becoming the sole high-level Soviet official with whom the President has held discussions zin more than 3½ years in office. Out of that session, at the very least, will come a fresh reading on the high-stakes...
Indeed, a remarkable aspect of Gromyko's trip was his willingness to interject himself into domestic electoral politics: in addition to calling on a President actively seeking reelection, he planned to meet the preceding day with Democratic Challenger Walter F. Mondale. Rarely if ever have lines between the nation's fiercely partisan politics at home and its foreign policy become so blended, and possibly blurred, just six weeks before a presidential election...
Reagan's earlier failure to meet with Soviet officials will automatically become a muted issue after Gromyko's visit to the White House. The big question is whether Mondale's other charges will as well...
Conceivably, the former Vice President could benefit politically from a failed Reagan-Gromyko meeting, particularly if the President is seen as overdemanding or arrogant. In virtually any other circumstance, however, Mondale has little choice but to offer his support of the U.S. position. Says a Reagan campaign official: "Either Mondale ends up looking like he's being played as a patsy, or he looks like his position is not that different from Reagan's on arms control...
...Reagan, the meeting with Gromyko carries far greater political rewards, though the chance for failure still exists if the two sides find themselves further apart than ever...