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Gorbachev’s Arms-Control Offensive: Unilateral, Bilateral and Multilateral Initiatives

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Soviet Foreign Policy

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Abstract

Gorbachev’s arms-control diplomacy is distinguished by a number of new themes or sets of aspirations which to a greater or lesser extent have been reflected in the strategies and tactics adopted in bilateral and multilateral negotiations on arms control. The conceptual basis to these new themes is drawn from the ‘new thinking’ on international security professed by Soviet officials. However, many of the new ideas which the Gorbachev leadership has attached to arms control and disarmament remain aspirational or declaratory and they are linked to a broader vision of a desirable future international security system which would demand a fundamental restructuring of inter-state relations. Such visionary appeals may appeal to a broad international — especially Third World — audience, but they cannot easily be packaged into practical arms-control proposals.

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Notes

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Authors
  1. Roy Allison
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Soviet and East European Studies, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada

    Carl G. Jacobsen (Director-designate, Head) (Director-designate, Head)

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© 1989 Carl G. Jacobsen

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Allison, R. (1989). Gorbachev’s Arms-Control Offensive: Unilateral, Bilateral and Multilateral Initiatives. In: Jacobsen, C.G. (eds) Soviet Foreign Policy. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-11341-5_5

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