East-West: Taking the First Step

In Helsinki, Shultz and Shevardnadze make progress toward the summit

The session was hardly a breakthrough, but the outcome, a slight easing of East-West tensions, was nonetheless welcome. When Secretary of State George Shultz emerged last week from the red brick residence of the U.S. Ambassador to Finland overlooking Helsinki harbor, walking in affable fashion alongside him was a smiling newcomer to the game of superpower politics, Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze, 57, appointed only a month ago. The two men paused briefly to exchange chitchat with the help of interpreters and to pose for eager photographers. Later Shultz declared that three hours of private talks with his Soviet counterpart had...

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