Nixon and Detente

President Nixon hoped to thaw the Cold War and ease relations between the nuclear superpowers. He felt it imperative to lessen the likelihood of nuclear conflict. By his 1968 election victory, the two nations had been bitter rivals for over 20 years. Several flashpoints had threatened the world and led the U.S. to implement a policy of Mutually Assured Destruction. Nixon’s efforts led to arms agreements, a lessening of tensions, and major Soviet concessions.

President Nixon wanted to move the world away from the brink of annihilation. The Eisenhower Administration initiated a nuclear buildup so he could cut back on conventional forces and balance the budget. President Kennedy hoped the idea of Mutually Assured Destruction would keep the Soviets in line. However, the two sides nearly went to war over Cuba in 1962. President Nixon hoped better relations with the Soviets would ease tensions, lessen the chance of war, and lead to greater international cooperation. Meanwhile, the Soviets worried about military expenditures and about encirclement by Chinese and American forces. In 1972, Richard Nixon and China’s Mao Zedong made peace.

The U.S. and China normalized relations in a stunning turn of events. Sino-Soviet relations reached a nadir and border clashes convinced China to reach out. Meanwhile, Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger recognized a historic opportunity to realign the world’s power structure. They hoped China could apply pressure on North Vietnam and bring them to the table and isolate the Soviets. Nixon ended the Vietnam War shortly after the China trip. Meanwhile, the Soviets feared a Sino-American alliance on their borders.

Nixon visited Moscow in May 1972 and engaged in intense negotiations with Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev. The summit set the stage for the Salt I Treaty limiting nuclear weapons and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty banning missile intercept systems. Like China, the Soviets withdrew support from North Vietnam. President Nixon also negotiated the Biological Weapons Convention, which was the first treaty to eliminate an entire category of weapons. After these dramatic achievements, Nixon began work on the Salt II Treaty.

Nixon’s resignation left Salt II to his successors. President Carter finished the negotiations, but the treaty died because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. By decade’s end, Détente was in shambles. Perceived American weakness and Soviet aggression around the world made a mockery of Nixon’s work. However, it also laid the groundwork for the Soviet collapse.

Détente demonstrated Soviet economic weakness. Communist leadership recognized problems within their system vis-a-vi capitalism. They could not afford the military arms race. American conservatives recognized this and it laid the groundwork for the Soviet collapse. Additionally, the Soviets signed the Helsinki Accords guaranteeing human rights within their borders. The document provided hope and motivation for Eastern Europe and led to Poland’s Solidarity Movement.

Conservatives have continued to assail Détente as counterproductive. They argue that the policy allowed the Soviet Union to survive another decade. However, Nixon had no way of knowing the depths of the Soviet system’s problems. In 1972, policy makers expected the U.S.S.R. to be around indefinitely. Additionally, Nixon hoped improved relations with the Soviets, and Chinese, would help end the Vietnam War. After normalizing relations with China and initiating Détente, the war ended.

Détente’s success was dependent on strong American leadership. The international community respected Nixon. The communists did not restart the war in Vietnam until Watergate for fear of reprisals. The Soviets began to flaunt the idea of Détente under President Carter, whom they did not respect and recognized as weak. The Soviets began taking American leadership seriously again after Reagan fired the air traffic controllers in 1981. By this point, Detente was dead.

President Nixon ushered in Détente in order to ease tensions between east and west. He used China to pigeonhole the Soviet Union into negotiations. The result was a number of positive treaties and an end to the Vietnam War. Détente’s success was dependent on strong American leadership. Weak leadership led to Soviet expansion and eventual abandonment of Détente by the Reagan Administration.