From Library Journal

A retired Foreign Service Officer and Brookings fellow dissects Soviet-American relations from 1969 through 1984 to determine just what detente was, why it failed, and whether it has a future. Garthoff's readable analysis treats events, personalities, and concepts in almost ovewhelming but fascinating detail, supported by exhaustive research and spiced by the anecdotes of one who often was there. He proceeds from the position that some combination of cooperation and competition offers a viable means of avoiding nuclear war. He concludes that detente failed because of conflicting understandings of the concept, exacerbated by a marked lack of empathy on both sides. A monumental contribution offering insightful, rarely considered comparisons of Soviet and American perspectives. Essential for academic and large public libraries; highly recommended for most others. James R. Kuhlman, Univ. of Georgia Lib., Athens

Copyright 1985 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

In this revised edition of his well-received 1985 volume, Raymond Gathoff incorporates newly declassified secret Russian as well as American materials into his account of American-Soviet relations from 1969-1980. The book considers both the broader context of world politics and internal political considerations and developments, and examines these developments as experienced by both sides. It also recounts how differences in ideology, perceptions, aims and interests were key determinants of both US and Soviet policies.

Raymond L. "Ray" Garthoff is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a specialist on arms control, intelligence, the Cold War, NATO, and the former Soviet Union. He is a former U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria, and has advised U.S. State Department on treaties. He has a B.A. from Princeton in 1948, a M.A. in 1949 and PhD from Yale in 1951. He is the author of numerous scholarly papers, books, and has been featured on PBS documentaries. He is well known for his refutation of Team B's and Richard Pipes's characterization of Soviet nuclear doctrine.