European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 25, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 10 the stars and stripes thursday september 25,1986 columns James Reston Reagan on Middle Road course with soviets president Heagan is twisting and turning these Days in his relations with the soviet Union la 1he irritation of Bath pravda and the Wall Street Jour Nal so maybe he s edging in the right direction. He s rejecting the extremes. He s refusing to make a Sharp either or Choice Between Nicholas Daniloff and Mikhail Gorbachev Between Secretary of state Shulz and Secretary of defense Weinberger Between what he said last month and what to said this month or be tween demanding everything White getting nothing and demanding less hut getting something in Short lit 15learning the first Rule of politics that you do have to choose Between the essential and the nol so essential. The president rebuked Moscow for making a his lag out of an innocent . Journalist Bui added ii the . That recent .-soviet control talks might Mark the beginning of a serious productive Ngoi iarion.,. And of this gives me Setti sup the Summit user news world distort Daniloff frames user x the soviet foreign minister while characterising the president s speech As regrettable added Laily. Encouraging outlines of meaningful agreements have been emerging. A Summit meeting is also a realistic possibility. We could move Forward rather smoothly i that is Ivha Tihe . Side Reagan has addressed the general Assembly of the United nations five times and each wish lilt 1085 speech an exception has been More conciliatory than the one before. In 1982 he listed in the toughest terms the soviet record of tyranny accused Moscow of eroding the Confidence needed for negotiations and condemned it for supplying chemical weapons for use in Laos and Cambodia. Has h8j speech was Milder. He stressed thai a nuclear War cannot be won and it must never Besought and while lie regretted Moscow s rejection of his Zero option nuclear proposal he added "1 still Haven t Given up Hope that the soviet Union will enter into serious this speech was made three weeks after the rus sians sent Down the South korean Airliner but As inthe Daniloff Case the president condemned the soviet action while defending continued efforts 10 get the race under control then in i9s4, Reagan said we Are ready for constructive negotiations with the soviet he added we do have principles and we will stand by them but we will also seek he Friendship and Good will of All both old friends and in 1935 the president though preparing for his first meeting with Zorha Chov. Was sharply critical of the Ellen Goodman russians As the chief agents of discontent in the world and he condemned Moscow s interventions in Afghanistan Nicaragua and elsewhere. At the same time he looked Forward to a fresh Start in his meeting with the soviet general Secretary. Thus it s not quite accurate to say that his latest speech was much More temperate than Ever before. His language was More temperate but he has always travelled on this double track roaring against soviet violations of human and Sovereign rights while offer ing to negotiate a verifiable treaty the president has been criticized for wasting chances for negotiations in his first term but in fairness three soviet leaders have died since Reagan came into the White House and he had no decisive Leader to talk to. Under Gorbachev and facing a stronger . Defense Moscow is now accepting Reagan s Agenda for reducing nuclear instead of merely controlling them. He has accepted the principle of on Sile inspection Al the Stockholm conference and has indicated willingness to talk about repairing soviet relations with China Japan and Israel. Trihas not persuaded those in the administration who doubt that the russians would keep their agreements even if they swore to them but the presi Dent has seen enough change la make him think that maybe just maybe he can find some Way to get out of this atrocious tangle. He is Well aware of Moscow s vocabulary trick being pretty Good at this game himself but there Are limits to his inquisitorial Zeal and he hears the ticking of the clock. When a Man reaches 7fi and facts retire Meni and even Graver nuisances he is inclined if he is Wise la pay a Little More attention to Lime and to his wife and the informed gossip Here is that Nancy Rea Gan would like to see her Guy leave the while House with More than a wave and a smile. Jcj hew Rort tombs now a Foxe Daniloff Case illustrates russian press controls 1 am following this Story with something less than journalistic objectivity. The setup the arrest and now the indictment of Nicholas Danilof fas a spy carries with it a special Edge of concern. Nick is a Friend As Well As a colleague. We were Nicman Fellows together at Harvard in 1974, mates on that year Long academic cruise ship for journalists. When i went to Moscow last year Nick was More than generous. He freely shared his insights his Lime his soviet experiences and friends. One night i went with Nick to the Home of a dissident couple he had known for years. We ate a magical smoked Salmon and swapped stories with Nick translating so fluently that i seemed to be talking directly to this couple. When 1 returned to the hotel that night i was awakened by two Anonymous phone Calls. They May have been wrong num Bers but staring at the ceiling Al 4 a.m., i had a taste of paranoia in my Mouth. There Are foreign posts More danger Ous than Moscow. War correspondents suffer greater risks. But reporting for a free press in a monitored society is one of the trickiest tasks. It is one that Nick knows and does Well. The barriers that a Western Cor respondent has to hurdle in the course of his or her daily work Are imposing. The new Batch of soviet leaders May want to air a portion of their society s troubles from alcoholism to corruption with their own people. But there is no such desire to share weaknesses with the foreign press. Gathering the news in a country thai instinctively withholds information As benign As a Telephone number Telephone books arc a prize Possession "411" operators do Noi exist presents exhausting challenges. Learning about the daily life of soviet people who Only Wjt to foreign correspondents Al personal risk is Touchy stuff. For the most part. Western journalists arc housed in foreign ghettos. They drive cars with yellow licenses thai identify them As clearly As a bumper Slicker or band. Working and living often with a family when your office and your Home Are probably bugged and when you must sort out sources from secret agents ii dds a Strain that was even on my two week visa palpable. One of the paradoxes is that the soviet Hierarchy longing for a Good image abroad nevertheless creates a hostile environment for foreign journalists. It is a tribute to the press corps thai for the most part reporters Don t allow their own treatment to permeate their View of soviet society. Nick who is As Clear eyed As any about the soviets said to me on a ride Oul to Pasternak s grave in the suburbs of Moscow Don t be mistaken there is a kind of consent of he governed Nick is not the first Daniloff 10 con front russian authority. His great great Grandfather look part in the ailed rebel lion of 1825, when a band of december its tried to overthrow the Ciar and spent decades in Siberia. Nick has been writing a Book about this ancestor. 1don t like to think of the irony. The soviets made a vast Bung Ling misjudgement this time. Some Kab instinct rooted in stalinism or czarist came out to grab Nick. It was the old technique Frame a journalist Label him a spy and Trade him for Gennadi Zarfia Rov it went Down easily enough in mos cow. In the soviet Union Douma lists in must be used in quotation Marks when applied to soviets Are at Best advocates usually press agents and always employees of the state. In is not hard for the soviet people to believe that out journalists also work for the government. Bui what a Blunder in the world. They pulled Down their groomed new image like a mask that reveals the old Bear s face. They slammed the jail door not Only on Nick but on the open they have fed All the worst stereotypes of retired cold warriors. Soviets often Sav that Ameri cans have no sense of history thai we suffer from amnesia. In our paper 310 Ries go from breaking news to old news to trivial Pursuit in a matter of months i imagine that the soviets expect Nick s name to fade from Page one to Page 12 to memory. Those who set this Sham into motion probably predict a face saving Trade when the heal is off. They Don t understand May never have understood the intensity of Ameri can feelings about a Frame up. The Sovi ets cannot get out of this with a mock trial set for Spring. Their one Way out is to let Nick through the Gates of a Forto to prison. Cd Tow we rift on Pott wjb0i9 group
