GENEVA SUMMIT 1985: THE SUPERPOWERS' SEARCH FOR COOPERATION

This comprehensive assessment examines the 1985 Geneva Summit between US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, analyzing the summit's outcomes, significance, and implications for superpower relations during the mid-1980s. The article explores the historical context of the Geneva Summit, tracing the evolution of US-Soviet relations from the tense early 1980s through the period of renewed dialogue that made the summit possible. The research investigates the preparation process for the summit, examining the diplomatic groundwork, agenda setting, and expectation management by both superpowers. The study examines the substantive discussions at Geneva, including negotiations on nuclear arms control, regional conflicts, human rights issues, and bilateral relations. The article assesses the immediate outcomes of the summit, including joint statements, confidence-building measures, and agreements for future negotiations. The research also evaluates the broader implications of the Geneva Summit for international security, alliance relationships, and the future trajectory of superpower relations. Furthermore, the analysis considers the factors that would determine whether the Geneva Summit represented a temporary thaw or the beginning of more fundamental transformation in East-West relations.

The 1985 Geneva Summit represented a watershed moment in superpower relations during the mid-1980s, with this article providing a comprehensive assessment of its significance and implications for the evolving US-Soviet relationship. The research begins by examining the historical context of the Geneva meeting, tracing the deterioration of US-Soviet relations during the early 1980s through the Soviet walkout from arms control talks, the deployment of intermediate-range nuclear forces in Europe, and the rhetorical confrontation between the Reagan administration and Soviet leadership. The analysis explores the preparation process for the summit, examining how diplomatic contacts through the Geneva nuclear and space talks, confidence-building measures, and changing leadership in the Soviet Union created conditions for renewed high-level dialogue. The article investigates the substantive discussions at Geneva, analyzing negotiations on strategic nuclear weapons, intermediate-range nuclear forces, space weapons including the Strategic Defense Initiative, regional conflicts in Afghanistan, Central America, and other hotspots, and human rights issues including Jewish emigration from the Soviet Union. The study examines the personal dynamics between Reagan and Gorbachev, assessing how their different leadership styles, political constraints, and personal chemistry influenced the summit proceedings and outcomes. The research evaluates the immediate results of the summit, including the joint statement emphasizing that nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought, agreements to accelerate nuclear arms negotiations, and arrangements for future summits and expanded bilateral contacts. Based on the comprehensive assessment, the article analyzes both the symbolic and substantive significance of the Geneva Summit and identifies the factors that would determine whether it marked a fundamental turning point or temporary adjustment in superpower relations. The findings provide valuable insights into the dynamics of summit diplomacy between adversarial powers and contribute to understanding how leadership change, domestic politics, and international conditions interact to shape major power relationships.