Today we learned about how Cold War foreign policy is quite analogous to modern friendships. At the Moscow summit meeting, the Russians yelled at Nixon for 3.5 hours, but they were just yelling at him because they needed to show their support for Vietnam. They sent the tape of the yelling to North Vietnam, and after the transcript had been sent, they had a party and drank together like buddies. If the Soviet Union didn't show support for North Vietnam, they feared they would turn to China or another enemy. It's kind of interesting because this is reflected in the way we support our friends. For example, sometimes you just have to lend your sympathy/support even if you don't really agree with what your friend is complaining about. This obligatory sympathy generally happens when you want something from someone else, and that can only be accomplished by showing you are totally on their side.
This is an interesting analogy and really helpful in terms of understanding foreign policy during this time period.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Tara. I really like your analogy of foreign policy and modern friendships. The relation makes much more sense with your analogy.
ReplyDeleteLove the analogy. I like the new approach to posting. The analogy was not only relatable but was also helpful in fully understanding the foreign policy of this era.
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