Washington Summit (1987)
Washington Summit | |
---|---|
Host country | United States |
Date | December 8–10, 1987 |
Venue(s) | White House |
Cities | Washington, D.C. |
Participants | Mikhail Gorbachev Ronald Reagan |
Follows | Reykjavík Summit |
Precedes | Moscow Summit (1988) |
The Washington Summit of 1987 was a Cold War-era meeting between United States president Ronald Reagan and General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev that took place on December 8–10. Reagan and Gorbachev discussed regional conflicts in Afghanistan, Central America, and Southern Africa, arms control issues for chemical weapons as well as conventional weapons, the status of START negotiations, and human rights. A notable accomplishment of the Washington Summit was the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.
Background
Following the near-breakthrough of the previous year's
For Reagan, trouble with
Gorbachev too was encountering opposition, not only the INF treaty negotiations, but also his
Thus, in spite of outside complications, by the time the summit was set to take place, most of the details relating the INF Treaty had already been worked out. At least a week before the meeting, The New York Times reported that "The Soviet leader and President Reagan are scheduled to sign a treaty Dec. 8 eliminating their nations' shorter-range and medium-range missiles", although the newspaper also said that discussion regarding "reducing long-range, strategic nuclear weapons" was encountering obstacles.[10]
Summit schedule
Date / Time | Location | Main Topics of Discussion | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
December 8, 10:45 A.M. - 12:30 P.M. |
The Oval Office, The White House | Human rights, emigration, improvement in relationship between the Soviet Union and the United States, arms control | |
December 8, 2:30-3:15 P.M. |
Cabinet Room, The White House | Arms control for conventional and chemical weapons | |
December 9, 10:35-10:45 A.M. |
Small office next to Oval Office | The President and General Secretary autograph a baseball for Joe DiMaggio. | Informal meeting between the two leaders. |
December 9, 10:55 A.M. - 12:35 P.M. |
The Oval Office | Progress of START discussions, Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty, Afghanistan, the Iran–Iraq War
|
|
December 10, 12:00 - 12:15 P.M. |
The Oval Office | Various regional issues | |
December 10, 12:40 - 2:10 P.M. |
Family Dining Room, The White House | Discussed how to characterize progress on regional issues (Vietnamese withdrawal from Cambodia, Afghanistan, Latin America, Africa) in joint statement, Geneva Agreements, North Korea
|
This meeting was a working luncheon that began directly after the previous meeting. The last moments of this meeting were largely filled with self-congratulatory statements and an exchange of jokes. |
See also
References
- ^ Savranskaya and Blanton (2007). Accessed 20 November 2011.
- ^ Keller (31 October 1987). Accessed 20 November 2011.
- ^ Herring (2008), 897.
- ^ Hayward (2010), 589-595
- ^ Hayward (2010), 595-596
- ^ Hayward (2010), 596
- ^ Hayward (2010), 597
- ^ Keller (31 October 1987). Accessed 20 November 2011.
- ^ Hayward (2010), 598
- ^ Shipler (01 December, 1987). Accessed 20 November 2011.
Sources
- (2007) "The INF Treaty and the Washington Summit: 20 Years Later". National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 238. Edited by Sventlana Savranskaya and Thomas Blanton. The National Security Archive (George Washington University).
- Hayward, Steven F. (2010). The Age of Reagan: The Conservative Counterrevolution 1980-1989. New York: Three Rivers Press. ISBN 978-1-4000-5358-2
- Herring, George C. (2008). From Colony to Superpower: U.S. Foreign Relations Since 1776. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-507822-0
- Keller, Bill. "Politics and Security Concerns Dash Hopes for Extended Trip by Gorbachev". New York Times (31 October 1987).
- Shipler, David K. "Gorbachev Mix On TV Is Tough But Cooperative". New York Times (1 December 1987).