Question

President Ronald Reagan's diary entry from December 7, 1988, reflects on a meeting with a tone of partnership and positivity. "I think the meeting was a tremendous success. A better attitude than at any of our previous meetings. He sounded as if he saw us as partners making a better world.”

To whom is he most likely referring in this entry, especially in the context of his efforts to end the Cold War?

The American people
The members of his cabinet
The Secretary-General of the United Nations
The General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union

Answer 1

The General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union — i.e., Mikhail Gorbachev. His glasnost/perestroika approach and summit talks with Reagan framed the USSR as a partner in reducing Cold War tensions.