George P. Shultz. “The former Soviet leader opened a dialogue with the West and helped to end the deadlock of the cold war"

     In the days surrounding the funeral of his predecessor, Konstantin Chernenko, Mikhail Gorbachev met with countless delegations from around the world. Vice President Bush was the head of our U.S. delegation, so I had the luxury of sitting back and closely observing the new Soviet leader. He held a stack of notes in front of him but never looked at them. He was alert to every nuance of the discussion. You could see the power of his intellect and the range of his ideas and basic knowledge. It was clear that he enjoyed the back and forth of conversation.

     When we returned to the embassy after the meeting, I said: "This man is unlike any Soviet leader we have dealt with before. He will be much more formidable in his quickness and ingenuity, but also much more accessible to argument and ideas."

     That proved to be the case as we moved through an emerging and improving relationship with the Soviet Union. The movement had its ups and downs, but President Reagan, in his first meeting with General Secretary Gorbachev, was able to establish an unusual and important personal relationship that gave drive and hope to the process.

     Private citizen Mikhail Gorbachev visited Stanford a few years after we had both left office, and one afternoon he and I sat together in the backyard of my home on the campus. I said, "When you and I took office, the cold war was about as intense as it could get, and when we left, it was all over but the shouting. What was the turning point?" Without a moment's hesitation, he answered, "Reykjavik." I asked him why and he said, "Because for an intense two-day period, the leaders sat together and talked in detail about all of the main issues. You were there," he said, "and you know how intense our discussions were."

    That 1986 meeting in the Icelandic capital established, for the first time, the basis for massive reductions in nuclear weapons. We also reached agreement that human rights would be recognized as a legitimate, regular topic on our agenda. With the benefit of hindsight, this would seem to be a clear beginning in the opening up of the Soviet Union.

     Reykjavik marked a turning point toward a reduction of nuclear weapons, but also in the recognition that change was under way and that a new world just might be possible. Mikhail Gorbachev, along with Ronald Reagan, was at the center of those changes. Hats off!

George P. Shultz served as the U.S. Secretary of State from 1982-89

 "Time", 13 11.2006