Détente and Cold War Strategy Overview

Kissinger 753 to 761

Nixon's détente policy

To manage U.S.-Soviet rivalry peacefully by combining incentives and penalties to encourage Soviet restraint.

Post-Vietnam and post-Watergate foreign policy

A time of American vulnerability, not ideal for escalating Cold War confrontations.

Nixon's analogy for U.S. state post-Vietnam

Like a swimmer barely escaping drowning being urged to swim the English Channel.

Congressional opposition to détente

Led by Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson.

Jackson-Vanik Amendment

It linked U.S. trade benefits to Soviet Jewish emigration, challenging détente.

Criticism of détente

Conservatives opposed its lack of confrontation; liberals decried its lack of moral assertiveness.

Watergate's impact on foreign policy

It undermined presidential authority and credibility during a critical phase of détente.

Suspicion about Nixon's motives during 1973 Middle East crisis

That the military alert was a distraction from Watergate.

Consequence of undermining arms control and defense spending

It paralyzed U.S. ability to craft a balanced and effective foreign policy.

Nixon's dismissal of criticism of détente

He believed critics, many of them former allies, were acting out of political expediency.

Diplomatic success in the Middle East post-1973

Reduced Soviet influence and U.S. dominance in the region's peace process.

Cold War event in Africa challenging détente

The Cuban military intervention in Angola, with weak U.S. response.

Soviet motive behind European Security Conference

To gain international legitimacy for postwar territorial gains and weaken NATO.

Key geopolitical trade-offs for U.S. participation in the Conference

Soviet cooperation on the Berlin agreement, German-Soviet treaty, and MBFR talks.

Basket III in the Helsinki Accords

Provisions on human rights and freedoms.

Contribution of Basket III to Soviet bloc decline

It empowered dissidents like Havel and Walesa to challenge communist regimes.

Initial view of critics on Helsinki Accords

As a major concession to Soviet legitimacy; Ford was accused of betrayal.

New York Times editorial on Helsinki Conference

"Never have so many struggled for so long over so little."

Kissinger's defense of Helsinki outcome

As the first time human rights became part of East-West negotiations.

Dual role of the Helsinki process

It moderated Soviet behavior and accelerated Soviet bloc collapse.

Helsinki Final Act on border recognition

Prohibited force but allowed peaceful change by mutual agreement.

Nixon's policy vs. past U.S. foreign policy traditions

It prioritized geopolitical necessity over universal moral advocacy.

Critics of détente's underestimation

The constraints of international realities and strategic parity.

Accusation against Nixon Administration

Lacking grounding in familiar American values and principles.

Kissinger's observation about post-Cold War U.S. policy

With the Soviet threat gone, the U.S. had to reconsider its global role without a clear adversary.