On the Scene: In Search of a Foreign Policy

BORIS YELTSIN went West to prove that, as a statesman, he could outshine even Mikhail Gorbachev. He wanted to make clear that he is a new kind of Russian leader, that the new Russia is a friend, that “there will be no more lies again, ever.”

And with a few missteps along the way, Mr. Yeltsin went a long way toward achieving those goals. By abandoning the decades-long Russian obsession with “parity” in nuclear arms, Mr. Yeltsin was able to reach a stunning deal which would effectively end the threat of a first strike and reduce nuclear weapons to a deterrent role.

ER

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Elisabeth Rubinfien

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BORIS YELTSIN went West to prove that, as a statesman, he could outshine even Mikhail Gorbachev. He wanted to make clear that he is a new kind of Russian leader, that the new Russia is a friend, that “there will be no more lies again, ever.”

And with a few missteps along the way, Mr. Yeltsin went a long way toward achieving those goals. By abandoning the decades-long Russian obsession with “parity” in nuclear arms, Mr. Yeltsin was able to reach a stunning deal which would effectively end the threat of a first strike and reduce nuclear weapons to a deterrent role.