U.S. SAYS THE CHERNENKO SPEECH HINTS DOOR MAY BE OPEN TO TALKS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000302640032-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 20, 2012
• Sequence Number: 32
• Publication Date: February 14, 1984
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/09/20: CIA-RDP90-00965R000302640032-5
ARTICLE APPEAREL
Cr: PAGE /I
NEW YORK TIMES
14 February 1984
U.S. Says the Chernenko Speech
Hints Door May Be Open to Talks
By BERNARD GWERTZMAN
Special to The New York Times
WASHINGTON, Feb. 13 ? The , death of Mr. Brezhnev in 1982.
United States said today that it wel- ' The State Department, in a state-
corned some apparently conciliatory Ament that deliberately avoided any
comments in the speech by the new ? mention of Mr. Chemenko's criticism
Soviet leader, Konstantin U. Chernen- ' of "some leaders of the capitalist coun-
ko. American officials said the com- tries," said, "We do of course welcome
ments suggested that the door might be
open to reviving a Soviet-American
dialogue.
Senior Reagan Administration offi-
cials said Mr. Chemenko's speech,
which he gave after being chosen as the
new General Secretary of the Commu-
nist Party, broke no major new ground.
But they said it appeared to respond
indirectly to President Reagan's call
for a new "constructive dialogue."
Several Soviet affairs specialists
with close ties to United States intelli-
gence singled out a statement by Mr.
airrienko that the Kremlin was ready
to "assistgli_practical deeds in
cgienit.ig international. tensions."
The senior Administration officials
said they expected Mr. Chernenko to
move cautiously in foreign affairs and
? his expressed support for solving inter-
national disputes through negotiation."
A Sense of Opportunity 1
In the last months of Yuri V. Andro-
' pov's tenure, substantive talks between
the two countries virtually ceased and
relations seemed to harden on both
? sides. Now, on the basis of President
Reagan's emphasis in the last month
on opening serious talks and the hints
, in Mr. Chemenko's speech, the mood
? within the Administration is clearly
one of sensing that an opportunity
; might develop, even though most ex-
perts say they do not anticipate any
? major shifts in Soviet policy.
Vice President Bush, who will be in
Moscow for the Andropov funeral on
? Tuesday, has asked to see Mr. Cher-
nenko, and State Department officials
? said Mr. Bush was authorized to stress
the Administration's desire for negoti-
He Backs 'Peaceful Settlement'
Mr. Chernenko said the Soviet Union
was "for a peaceful settlement of all
disputable international problems
through serious, equal and construc-
tive talks
"The U.S.S.R.," he said, "will coop-
erate in full measure with all states
which are prepared to assist through
practical deeds to lessening interne-
, tonal tensions and creating an atmos-
phere of trust in the world."
The State Department statement
said: "As the President has stated,
:these are our goals as well. What is
'needed is to move from words to deeds
in building a more constructive U.S.-
Soviet relationship."
Mr. Chernenko has built his career in
Communist Party ranks as a senior ap-
paratchik,-mostly under the direct pa-
tronage of Mr. Brezhnev. He first met
Mr. Brezhnev in Soviet Moldavia after
World War II, when Mr. Brezhnev
headed the party there. He followed
Mr. Brezhnev to Moscow and had sev-
eral jobs within the party Central Com-
mittee, in effect becoming the senior
administrative official in the party.
Visited U.S. in 11Ws
? Mr. Brezhnev promoted him in the
late 1970's to become a party secretary
and then to be a member of the ruling
Politburo. In the late 1960's, American
officials said, Mr. Chernenko made an
unpublicized visit to the United States
to study modern management tech-
niques and data processing, at a time
when the Soviet Union was beginning to
give priority to introducing advanced
management into their society.
? During that visit, Mr. Chernenko
went to the Bureau of Census for a dis-
cussion with senior officials about the
use of computers and data processing,
according to Murray Feshbach, a sen-
tir research scholar at Georgetown
Vniversity's Center for Demographic
Research, who was then the Census Bu-
reau's top expert on the Soviet Union.
"I remember him asking several
questions that seemed germane and
appropriate," Mr. Feshbach said.
Over all, one authority on Soviet af-
fairs said today, Mr. Chernenko has de-
veloped the reputation of being a
"team player." Mr. Brezhnev relied on
, him completely, the analyst said, and
they seemed to be good friends as well
as associates.
- Mr. Chernenko lived in an apartment
? one floor below Mr. Brezhnev's in the
special apartment house for top Soviet
officials on Kutuzovsky Prospekt in
Moscow. Mr. Andropov also lived in the
- ! same building and was apparently
close to both men as well.
rely, perhaps more than had any rirevi- ? ations that might lead t9 a summit
ous Soviet leader, on collective deci- meeting.
sions within the ruling Politburo. 'Bottomed Out in Relations'
Nevertheless, the intel4ence offi-
cials, who are experts on the Soviet "I think we have bottomed out in
said Mr. Chernenko appeared relations," one senior State Depart-
Union,mentofficial said, "and we're probably
14311-tUY committed to the w11-?' ?f going to see a gradual probing on both
detente fostered_ty, Leonid I. Brezhns_v. sides, leading perhaps to enough
Mr. Chernenke_Hig_bir,...Dtezbne2es progress to warrant a meeting between
protege, Reagan and the Soviet leaders later in
The intelligence officiaLs said Mr. the year." -
chemenku 72 years old,yho was a The official said he used the term
particnt in the last Soviet-American "Soviet leaders" because it was possi-
aimmit meeting, set a more moderate ble that Mr. Chernenko may have to
tone avoiding detailed criticism of -share power with someone else in
place e years o r. rezh-
Late this afternoon, President Rea- nev's tenure.
gan arrived at the Soviet Embassy in
Washington and signed the condolence
book that was opened to the public this
morning. The White House said Mr.
Reagan signed this message:.
"Please .accept my condolences on
the death of Chairman Andropov and
I convey my sympathy to his family."
! The White House said Mr. Reagan gan Adiministration for attack.
also signed a similar book after the
--ricaripolicystpke. rA
rgeinotfh the Governmfirst ent, as to
Ein o
American analysts of Soviet affairs
in examining the text of Mr. Chernen-
ko's speech, said they were struck by
the lack of any direct criticism of ei
ther the United States or Mr. Reagan
His criticism instead pointed at "some
leaders of the capitalist countries.'
Mr. Andropov, in his statements in re-
cent months, often singled out the Rea
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/09/20: CIA-RDP90-00965R000302640032-5