This chapter examines the evolution of Soviet foreign policy from Stalin's death in 1953 until the 1956 Suez Crisis. It begins with a discussion of the power struggle in the Soviet leadership, which led to the arrest and execution of Lavrentii Beria. Beria, as well as his rivals in leadership, briefly explored prospects for detente with the West, including by effectively giving up on socialism in East Germany. By 1955, when Nikita Khrushchev consolidated power in his hands, such prospects faded for two reasons. First, the nuclear revolution emboldened Khrushchev, eliminating the need for concessions to the West. Second, decolonization in the “third world” opened new horizons for the Soviet leader as he embraced opportunities to project Soviet influence to remote shores, seeking a clientele and – through their recognition of Soviet greatness – a form of revolutionary legitimacy. The chapter offers an in-depth analysis of Khrushchev's bromance with Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser and an overview of the consequences of the Suez Crisis for Soviet foreign policy.

Chapter 9 covers 1985, beginning with the election of Mikhail Gorbachev as Soviet leader. It discusses the Soviet “new thinking,” Gorbachev’s desire to implement reform, and his decision to remove Gromyko as foreign minister. For the newly re-elected US president, Gorbachev’s arrival was perfectly timed. Riding a wave of popularity and political strength, Reagan stood by the policy of engagement and moderation. He rejected the advice of hard-liners who persisted in opposing realistic negotiation. Despite his early misgivings, Reagan realized that Gorbachev was a “somewhat different breed” of Soviet leader. The Geneva summit of November 1985 – the first meeting of a US and Soviet leader in six and a half years – marked the end of the Second Cold War. Although no agreement on arms control emerged, the meeting set a new tone for US–Soviet relations. It provided a base for trust between two men with different backgrounds and philosophies. Reagan and Gorbachev viewed the summit as a personal breakthrough. There were many issues to resolve, and Gorbachev’s policies would evolve gradually. But the events of 1985 did much to allay the tension and mutual suspicion between the two nations.

Chapter 9 examines the resurgence of Israel’s policy of engagement under the premiership of Ehud Barak, who used his position as primary decision-maker to redirect the focus of Israel’s peace negotiations from the Palestinians to Syria. The chapter scrutinizes this process by focusing on the Blair House meeting, the Shepherdstown summit and the encounter in Geneva betweenUS President Bill Clinton, and Syria’s President Hafez al-Assad. The chapter provides a novel explanation of how Barak remained hostage to a set of domestic factors, which was decisive in the failure of the Israel-Syria peace process. These domestic factors included hostile Israeli public opinion to withdrawing from the Golan, Barak’s fractured coalition, and attempts to impose tough conditions through legislation on subjecting any peace agreement with Syria toreferendum. However, the Syrian president was equally inhibited by domestic factors, which determined his decision to reject the Israeli offer relayed by US President Clinton, to withdraw from the Golan Heights in exchange for a comprehensive peace. Al-Assad’s domestic constraints included his own ill health, his commitment to Ba'ath ideology, and his concern that concessions to Israel might torpedo the succession of power from him to his son, Bashar.