Human Rights, Perestroika, and the End of the Cold War
July 2009
A diplomatic memoir unlike any other, this volume takes the reader behind the scenes on both sides of the Cold War as two men form an unlikely partnership to help transform Soviet-American relations.
“This unique, joint memoir reveals a behind-the-scenes look at the U.S.-Soviet policymaking process at the end of the 20th Century. The authors provide a fascinating account of their roles in moving the issue of human rights up the foreign policy agenda.”
—Robert Kagan, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
“Of all the factors that led to the downfall of Soviet Communism and the end of the Cold War, the issue of human rights stands out. Human rights are the very antithesis of Communist ideology and practice, and sapped at their foundation. Adamishin and Shifter offer invaluable insights into how the softest of all elements of soft power triumphed over a regime built on force and fear. More than a study of recent history, this is a much-needed encouragement for all those who aspire to a world with a human face.”
—Dmitri Trenin, Director of the Carnegie Moscow Center
“In recounting the experience of the senior negotiators on one of the key issues that arose during the Cold War, the authors provide valuable insight into negotiations that have received relatively little attention as compared to those on arms control and geopolitical issues. Their comments are also very useful in combating some widespread misconceptions about the nature and achievements of Gorbachev’s perestroika.”
—Jack F. Matlock, Jr., U.S. Ambassador to the USSR, 1987-1991
“Of all the factors that led to the downfall of Soviet Communism and the end of the Cold War, the issue of human rights stands out. Human rights are the very antithesis of Communist ideology and practice, and sapped at their foundation. Adamishin and Shifter offer invaluable insights into how the softest of all elements of soft power triumphed over a regime built on force and fear. More than a study of recent history, this is a much-needed encouragement for all those who aspire to a world with a human face.”
—Dmitri Trenin, Director of the Carnegie Moscow Center
Anatoly Adamishin
Anatoly Adamishin has had a distinguished career in the foreign ministry of both the Soviet Union and the Russian Federation, serving as a deputy foreign minister and as ambassador to Italy and the United Kingdom.
Richard Schifter
Richard Schifter was a lawyer turned diplomat who served in three presidential administrations, including as the State Department’s point person on international human rights issues from 1985 to 1992. The fundamental right of human beings to live without facing discrimination had been a personal issue for Mr. Schifter, who lost his parents in the genocide of European Jews during World War II.
Mr. Schifter spent more than three decades as a lawyer representing Native American tribes before he was selected by President Ronald Reagan in 1985 to serve as assistant secretary of state for human rights and humanitarian affairs. In that capacity, he headed the State Department’s Bureau of Human Rights, now called the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.