Word: reagans
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...will be shaped by geopolitical factors, from the arcane abacus of nuclear armaments to the broader themes of superpower rivalry and coexistence. But inevitably policies are made by people, whose force of character and personalities can count for as much as their policy views. The zero-sum qualities of Reagan's top advisers have nearly paralyzed the tortuous process of hammering out an arms-control proposal that is acceptable to both Reagan and the Soviet Union. The man charged with shaping a consensus, National Security Adviser McFarlane, has great expertise in arms control and the will to move quarreling partisans...
Despite Weinberger's absence, Reagan no longer needs to listen to his Defense Secretary to know what is on his mind. He has great respect for Weinberger's opinions. Both men share a simplicity of vision untroubled by confusing nuance. That is not to say their vision is identical, however. Reagan persists in believing that the U.S. can have both arms reductions and SDI; Weinberger apparently cares less about a superpower deal than about Star Wars. Says Paul Warnke, Jimmy Carter's chief arms-control negotiator: "Essentially what Weinberger is urging is that we go it alone...
...variety of Soviet experts and State Department bureaucrats will accompany Reagan's principal advisers to the summit sessions, mostly to act as functionaries. "Deciding who is going to sit at the table is like deciding who is going to meet Princess Di," says one diplomat...
...summit, the President and his men seem caught in an awkward minuet. Unlike earlier Presidents, Reagan is oblivious to the essential details of arms control. His advisers are either unwilling or unable to make him confront the difficult practical choices. Until they do, it is hard to see how they can offer the President much more than moral support when he faces off against Gorbachev in Geneva, or begin the hard business of translating superpower proposals into progress. --By Evan Thomas. Reported by Laurence I. Barrett/Washington
...events are deliberately casual. An expert on Soviet culture, steered by Presidential aides, approaches Ronald Reagan at a reception and gently converses with him on the Russian mind. Only later is the conversation buttressed by background papers. Relaxing in the the White House, the President turns on a video recorder and watches images of Eduard Shevardnadze in action, with a voice-over describing his negotiating style. White House aides order in a print of Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears, the 1981 Oscar-winning romantic comedy about three young Soviet workingwomen who move with their dreams to the big city...