Arms-Control Frenzy

ON the morning of Friday, September 18—the last day of Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze’s stay in Washington— Dan Rather, Peter Jennings, and Tom Brokaw were interrupting regularly scheduled TV programs with excited announcements of a great breakthrough in arms-control negotiations. Dan Rather told his viewers that there was “good news” from Washington, and in Moscow the headline of Izvestia read: “Good News from Washington.”

It was “something of a historic morning,” said Peter Jennings. “Truly historic,” said White House Chief of Staff Howard Baker. “A tentative agreement has been reached on a treaty,” said Dan Rather. “Agreement in principle was reached to conclude an INF treaty,” said President Reagan. “I want to congratulate Secretary Shultz and Foreign Minister Shevardnadze.”

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Tom Bethell

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ON the morning of Friday, September 18—the last day of Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze’s stay in Washington— Dan Rather, Peter Jennings, and Tom Brokaw were interrupting regularly scheduled TV programs with excited announcements of a great breakthrough in arms-control negotiations. Dan Rather told his viewers that there was “good news” from Washington, and in Moscow the headline of Izvestia read: “Good News from Washington.”

It was “something of a historic morning,” said Peter Jennings. “Truly historic,” said White House Chief of Staff Howard Baker. “A tentative agreement has been reached on a treaty,” said Dan Rather. “Agreement in principle was reached to conclude an INF treaty,” said President Reagan. “I want to congratulate Secretary Shultz and Foreign Minister Shevardnadze.”