Section 6. Interpreting Skills Training Historic handshakes

Ex.1. Read one text. Render its meaning. Give additional information explaining the historic importance of this diplomatic action.

“This historic visit marked the beginning of the normalization period, opened the door for the development of bilateral ties, ushered in a new page in the history of relationship between the two countries and laid down the foundation for the future establishment of diplomatic relations.”

1. Stalin-Churchill-Truman 1945

The Soviet Union's Communist Party General Secretary Joseph Stalin, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and U.S. President Harry Truman shook hands in July 17 1945 in Germany to display to the world that, for the time being, all three countries were united in restructuring a post-Nazi Europe. The triple handshake capped off a series of discussions on how to handle postwar Europe, after the official surrender of Nazi Germany on May 8 of that year.

2. John f. Kennedy- Nikita Khrushchev 1961

President John F. Kennedy welcomes Nikita Khrushchev, the premier of the Soviet Union, at the home of the U.S. ambassador in Vienna on June 3, 1961. The handshake kicked off the historic talks between the two leaders, which touched on nuclear disarmament, ongoing conflict in Southeast Asia and ideological disagreements between the two leaders.

3. Richard Nixon- Mao Tse-tung, 1972

U.S. President Richard Nixon, a staunch anti-Communist through much of his political career, shakes hands with Chinese Communist leader Mao Tse-tung in February 1972 on Nixon's historic visit to China. From the late 1960s, the former Soviet Union went into an offensive in its battle for hegemony with the United States, which was then immersed in the Vietnam War. Under the strategic consideration of contending with the Soviet Union, Nixon, who took office in 1969, started to adjust U.S. policy towards China, and the relationship between the two countries began to shift from confrontation to dialogue.

4. Menachem Begin - Anwar Sadat, 1977

On November 20, 1977, Sadat became the first Arab leader to visit Israel officially when he met with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, and spoke before the Knesset in Jerusalem about his views on how to achieve a comprehensive peace to the Arab–Israeli conflict. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin welcomes Egyptian President Anwar Sadat with a handshake on Nov. 19, 1977, an extraordinary gesture that helped lead to the signing of a peace treaty 16 months later.

5. Ronald Reagan -Mikhail Gorbachev 1985

A handshake between U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev on Nov. 19, 1985 at a summit in Geneva signals the opening of a new era in relations. Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, first shook hands with Mikhail Gorbachev, the last head of state for the Soviet Union, at a summit in Geneva on Nov. 19, 1985. That handshake signaled a warming of relations between the Cold War foes. Reagan reaches across the table to shake Gorbachev’s hand while sitting at the negotiating table during the Moscow Summit Conference on June 1, 1988, days after Reagan declared that the Cold War had ended.