Evening star., 1961-01-25
To Be EMPLOYED Rarely

It is not surprising that Secretary
Of State Dean Rusk, speaking both for
himself and the President, has served
notice on the world that the United
States in the months Immediately ahead
will rely primarily on quiet, unpublicized
diplomacy-as distinct from spectacular
heads-of-government gatherings to
promote progress toward tension-easing
international agreements.
Thus, as Mr.. Rusk has put it in his
special statement, 1T is the intention
OF President Kennedy and myself to use
freely the diplomatic channel for in
formal as well as formal discussions and
consultations with other governments"
and the intention will be translated into
action in an atmosphere of relative
privacy far removed from the hoopla
OF summitry. OF course, this does not
rule out the idea Of an eventual get
together at the highest level, but it
nevertheless plainly suggests that the
new American administration will agree
to take part in such a meeting only
when, as and If advance preparations
for it hold out a reasonable measure Of
assurance that it will result in some
concrete good.
Mr.. Kennedy'S own wariness Of the
summit has been expressed on more
than few occasions, as in one of his
campaign speeches declaring that he
would take part in headS-of-govern-
ment parley only If there is some
reason to believe that a meeting OF
minds can be obtained" AS for Mr.
Rusk, he has written brilliantly and
eloquently on the subject. To appreciate
his thinking in that respect, one must
read his article in last April's issue of
the quarterly Foreign Affairs-an article
composed and published long before the
nomination and election of Mr.. Kennedy.
It is an altogether excellent piece that
merits everybody's attention, including
especially Mr.. Khrushchev and his
colleagues. Here are a few excerpts
from it:
The President, as Chief Of State Of the
United States, can and ought to undertake
a limited and carefully planned program of
State visits, short in duration and aimed at
the exchange Of courtesy and respect as a
tangible expression Of the good will Of the
American people. But negotiation at the
chief-of-government level is quite another
matter. It is not easily accommodated among
the peculiarities Of our constitutional system;
it diverts time and energy from exactly the
point at which we can spare 1t least: 1t does
not give us effective negotiation: such
experience as we have had with summit
diplomacy does not encourage the view that
it contributes to the advancement Of Ameri-
can interests. conclude that summit
diplomacy is to be approached with the
wariness with which a prudent physician
prescribes q habit-forming drug-a tech
nique to be employed rarely and under the
most exceptional circumstances. with rigo-
rous safeguards against its becoming q
debilitating or dangerous habit.
This quotation gives only a sug-
gestion Of the flavor and character Of
Mr.. Rusk's views on summitry. His April
article must be read in full for an
appreciation Of his own and the Presi-
dents thinking on the subject It is
thinking Of very high order in the
field of international political science,
theoretical and applied. Undoubtedly
the Kremlin has read it with care, or at
least it should. In any case, Americans
and free men everywhere have reason
to feel assured by it.