Documents / FOIA release

Soviet Public Treatment of President Reagan

Central Intelligence Agency · 1984-06-01 · 56 pages · text by GLM-OCR

This Central Intelligence Agency report, dated 1 June 1984 and marked unclassified for official use only, reviews how Soviet leaders and media treated President Reagan from November 1980 through May 1984. It finds that Moscow twice moderated its rhetoric to test prospects for better relations, and that attacks became the most abusive in two decades after the South Korean airliner shootdown. The report compiles authoritative Soviet statements and midlevel and routine media commentary as a baseline for analysts.

  • p. 3 …in Soviet expectations regarding U.S.-Soviet cooperation. 18. + Routine media commentary has been the least…
  • p. 5 …one reasonable road--peaceful coexistence, mutually advantageous cooperation. 41. But there are also such statesmen in…
  • p. 7 …on confrontation; not on peaceful mutually beneficial cooperation, but on the use of trade to military…
  • p. 11 …They wish lasting peace and mutually beneficial cooperation. 91. Andropov, speech at CPSU Central Committee plenum…
  • p. 18 …to a policy of peace and international cooperation. 151. Andropov, interview (Pravda, 25 Jan 84) 152…
  • p. 19 …for it a policy of peace and cooperation. 161. Ustinov, article for Armed Forces Day (Pravda…
  • p. 26 …the arms race, and development of international cooperation. . . 209. President Konstantin Chernenko, speech at dinner for…
  • p. 38 …agreements in trade and scientific-technical cooperation, agreements signed by the Government of the United States…
  • p. 41 …Are we not overestimating our own strength? Can international security and international cooperation seriously be expected…
  • p. 42 …The Soviet Union is always ready for honest, equal, and mutually advantageous cooperation with any state…
  • p. 44 …climate of mutual trust, mutual understanding and cooperation in the world. 345. Valentin Zorin, Soviet television…
  • p. 46 …rapid demolition of the structure of international cooperation built by the efforts of many countries on…

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## Document 1 of 2 AGAL Concatenated Database

unscrupulously about the lagging behind of the United States, intimidated with international terrorism, fed cock-and-bull stories about events in Poland, Central America, South and Southeast Asia.

77. Attempts are made to make use of diplomatic talks themselves in order to deceive the public, among them talks on the limitation of arms and on disarmament. The impression is created that often they are entered into only to create illusions and, by lulling public vigilance, continue the arms race. . . .

78. Brezhnev, Komsomol congress speech (Pravda, 19 May 82)

79. President Reagan, on his part, has now declared that the United States is ready for the resumption of the talks. In our opinion, this is a step in the right direction. It is, however, important that the talks should begin immediately in the right key.

80. In the same speech the President said that the United States at the talks would be in favor of substantial reductions. Well, we have always been in favor of substantial reductions of strategic arms; there is no need to persuade us in this respect.

81. But if one looks at the essence of the ideas voiced by the U.S. President on such reductions, one notes unfortunately that the American position is absolutely unilateral in nature. Above all, because the United States would like in general to exclude from the talks the strategic arms it is now most intensively developing.

82. Brezhnev, speech at Kremlin meeting of military commanders (Pravda, 28 Oct 82)

83. The ruling circles of the United States of America have launched a political, ideological, and economic offensive on socialism and have raised the intensity of their military preparations to an unprecedented level. . . .

84. The masses of people on all continents angrily protest against Washington's aggressive policy which is threatening to push the world into the flames of a nuclear war. The adventurism, rudeness, and undisguised egoism of this policy arouse growing indignation in many countries, including those allied with the United States. . . .

85. TASS report of 15 November 1982 meeting between General Secretary Andropov and Vice President Bush (Pravda, 16 Nov 82)

86. In this respect Yu. V. Andropov stressed that the Soviet Union, consistently carrying out a policy of peace, is prepared to build relations with the United States on a basis of full equality,

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About this file

FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. The text was read from the page images by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word. 56 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.