The Dartmouth Conference: The First 50 Years 1960—2010 Reminiscing on the Dartmouth Conference by Yevgeny Primakov T THE PEAK OF THE COLD WAR, and facilitating conditions conducive to A the Dartmouth Conference was one of economic interaction. the few diversions from the spirit of hostility The significance of the Dartmouth Confer- available to Soviet and American intellectuals, ence relates to the fact that throughout the who were keen, and able, to explore peace- cold war, no formal Soviet-American contact making initiatives. In fact, the Dartmouth had been consistently maintained, and that participants reported to huge gap was bridged by Moscow and Washington these meetings. on the progress of their The composition of discussion and, from participants was a pri- time to time, were even mary factor in the success instructed to “test the of those meetings, and it water” regarding ideas took some time before the put forward by their gov- negotiating teams were ernments. The Dartmouth shaped the right way. At meetings were also used first, in the early 1970s, to unfetter actions under- the teams had been led taken by the two countries by professionally quali- from a propagandist connotation and present fied citizens. From the Soviet Union, political them in a more genuine perspective. But the experts and researchers working for the Insti- crucial mission for these meetings was to tute of World Economy and International establish areas of concurring interests and to Relations and the Institute of U.S. and Cana- attempt to outline mutually acceptable solutions dian Studies, organizations closely linked to to the most acute problems: nuclear weapons Soviet policymaking circles, played key roles. reduction, international conflict resolution, For the United States, the team was made up 1 of political scientists; prominent bankers and as was explicitly demonstrated by the failure businessmen; and former senior officers of of the Middle East policies pursued by the State Department, the Pentagon, the U.S. George W. Bush. I tend to believe that my government, and the CIA. For a long time, Dartmouth colleague and friend Hal the American team was headed by David Saunders—a brilliant expert on international Rockefeller, with whom I developed a warm affairs—would share the view that integrat - relationship. The Soviet team was originally ing efforts by the United States and Russia headed by Nikolay Inozemtsev and then by could be of paramount importance in putting Georgy Arbatov. Vitaly Zhurkin, Mikhail an end to the inveterate Arab-Israeli enmity. Milstein, and Grigory Morozov were exten - This is especially so, if we consider the rise sively involved. I and my counterpart, Harold of Iran in the region, a consequence of the Saunders, former U.S. Assistant Secretary U.S. occupation of Iraq. of State, were cochairs of the specialized The Dartmouth Conference was also Regional Conflicts Task Force. valuable in that it contributed to the growing It should be noted that we achieved human affinity and the forging of friendships, considerable progress in designing measures so difficult to imagine at that time. Let me to normalize the situation in the Middle share a story that was an unusual occurrence East. And all of our suggestions were com - during that period, when an ideological wall mu nicated to the very “top.” Much to my had been erected between our two countries. regret, due to external and internal reasons, In 1974, when planning the meeting that our recommendations were never translated was to be held in Tbilisi, our team wanted into action. The U.S.-U.S.S.R./Russian to invite the Americans to visit a Georgian collaboration seeking to resolve the Middle family. We asked for and gained permission East conflict did not yield any fruit even from Eduard Shevardnadze, then First after the cold war was over. The ensuing Secretary of the Communist Party of Georgia. monopolization of the mediation mission by I suggested dinner at the apartment of my the United States proved to be ineffective, wife’s relative—Nadezhda Kharadze. A 2 professor of the Conservatory and a former private jet and left with everyone else at three prima donna of the Tbilisi Opera Theatre, she o’clock in the morning. He even offered lived modestly, like most members of the Geor - dishwashing assistance to the hostess. Later, gian intelligentsia. Nadezhda had to borrow a on multiple occasions, he told me that he table and chairs from her neighbors, and as a never forgot that evening, although initially result, all residents in the building knew that he underestimated the sincerity of the hosts, she was expecting Rockefeller himself to be thinking, perhaps, that everything had been one of her guests. On that evening, the party just another instance of a Potemkin Village also included former Senator Hugh Scott, who scenario. I remember that he approached had proposed the impeachment of President Ernest Hemingway’s portrait, which was Nixon; Scott’s wife; former U.S. representative hanging above my nephew Sandrik’s desk, to the U.N., Charles Yost; and editor-in-chief and looked behind the frame to make sure that of Time magazine, Hedley Donovan. the spot behind it was not sun-bleached— Nadezhda’s apartment was on the fourth evidence that the portrait was not hung with floor. Municipal authorities had no time to the single purpose of impressing him. paint the walls inside the stairwell by the time In Tbilisi, David Rockefeller enjoyed of our arrival, so they thought better of it and tremendous popularity. Ted Kennedy, who instead unscrewed all the light bulbs. Because stayed in the Georgian capital with our group, there was no elevator in the building, we complained that whenever he appeared in walked up the stairs in darkness, yet, on each the streets, the boys would always cry out: floor there was a source of light—just like in “Hello to Rockefeller!” Italian movies, every apartment door opened as Meeting and working with my American we passed by and we were scrutinized in silence. colleagues at the Dartmouth Conference is The party was a lot of fun. We enjoyed one of the best memories of my life. splendid Georgian dishes and sang Russian, Dr. Yevgeny Primakov is president of the Russian Chamber Georgian, and American songs. David of Commerce and was Russia’s foreign minister from 1996 Rockefeller rescheduled his return flight on his to 1998 and prime minister from 1998 to 1999. 3 Citizens Light the Way by David Rockefeller OMETIME IN THE SPRING or early Soviets seemed eager to put the Stalinist era Ssummer of 1961, Norman Cousins, the behind them and find ways to engage the editor of the prestigious Saturday Review of West in “useful dialogue.” Literature, a man I had known and admired Norman loved the word dialogue and for many years, came to see me in my office at placed great stock in face-to-face meetings as the Chase Manhattan a means of changing Bank in Lower Manhat- attitudes and solving tan. Norman invited me to problems. I was much attend, according to my less optimistic than he notes at the time, a “US- that conversations would USSR conference” in somehow diminish the January of 1962 at Airlie ideological, political, and House near Washington, military threat that the D.C., as part of the Amer- Soviet Union posed to ican delegation. Norman the United States. But said that this would be Norman was a tremen- the third meeting of the dously persuasive man. group—the first of which had been held on the In the end, he convinced me that there was Dartmouth College campus in Hanover, New merit to his idea. Hampshire, in the autumn of 1960—and that After consulting with my advisors and the conference had the support of senior offi- checking my schedule, I agreed to join the cials in the Kremlin, as well as in the U.S. delegation and attend the January meeting. government. When I asked the purpose of the As luck would have it, the meeting was post- conference, Norman said it might improve re- poned and the location changed to October of lations between the two countries because the 1962 in Andover, Massachusetts, on the cam- 4 pus of Phillips Academy. Meanwhile, my own my belief that Dartmouth made a profound schedule (I was president and co-chief execu - difference in the relationship between the two tive officer of the Chase at the time) prevented superpowers. me from participating in all but the initial That is why I believe that the Dartmouth stages of the conference, which, in retrospect, Conference’s 50th anniversary provides an was probably the most memorable of all Dart - opportunity to reflect on the past and imagine mouth conferences. The Soviet and American the future. Although Russia and the United delegates met and continued their “dialogue” States are no longer locked in a deadly con - against the chilling backdrop of the Cuban test, threatening world peace and the survival missile crisis—certainly the darkest and poten - of the human race, we should renew our efforts tially deadliest moment in the entire cold war. to build a new bilateral relationship that could I attended most of the Dartmouth meet - lead to a more stable and peaceful interna - ings over the first 30 years and found them tional order. This relationship—like any incredibly useful in exactly the way that relationship—will develop only if we tend it Norman Cousins had claimed they would be. carefully and channel its energies thought - Both the Americans and the Russians who were fully. Governments must, of course, play a privileged to attend these annual gatherings central role in this process.