A Change of Stance in the Cold War?

In foreign affairs, no rule applies over long periods of time. Only the simple-minded imagine that, once committed to a crusade, a government must continue it until either victory or defeat. Or like children watching a Western, they assume that the good guys are always on the same side, and that a bad guy will act equally tough on all fronts. People a little more sophisticated may assume that bad guys too are smart and, without ceasing to be bad guys, may behave nicely toward one adversary while preparing a confrontation with another.

In such a view, the United States and the Soviet Union are now working for a detente between them because they both foresee war with China. This view, I submit, attributes to the State Department and...