ABSTRACT
The prevailing interpretation of recent Soviet foreign policy emphasizes Stalin’s death as the great watershed event, from which is charted the shift toward a more flexible policy, broadly known by the term “peaceful coexistence.” Although this emphasis properly draws attention to the new departures of the more recent period and to the dynamic character of Soviet policy, it gives insufficient attention to significant changes in outlook and behavior which began to be manifested before the death of Stalin. The issue is not merely one of correctly dating the beginning of a trend; it is, rather, the deepening of our understanding of the forces which shape Soviet foreign policy.
