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DISPUTED BORDERS EXIST WITHIN THE SOVIET UNION'S FEDERAL SYSTEM, BUT THE GOVERNMENT PAYS LITTLE ATTENTION TO THEM. SOME OF THE BORDERS DEMARCATE CULTURAL IDENTITIES. THIS PAPER EXAMINES THE BACKGROUND TO THESE CONTESTED BORDERS IN SEVEN CASE STUDIES. THE MOST CONTESTED BORDERS BETWEEN ETHNIC GROUPS ARE IN THE WEST AND NEW FRONTIER ZONES, THE MOUNTAINOUS CAUCASUS, AND NOMADIC CENTRAL ASIA. SOME BORDER LINES WERE ORIGINALLY SET UP IN AN ARBITRARY FASHION, IGNORING LINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL DIFFERENCES. THE PROBLEMS WERE HEIGHTENED BY SETTLEMENTS OF LARGE NUMBERS OF PEOPLE FROM DISTANT AREAS OF RUSSIA.

A brief overview of the Fulbright international educational exchange program with the USSR is presented by looking at the context in which this exchange of lecturers developed, its purpose, its achievements, some of the current critical issues facing it, & possible directions for future progress. Since its establishment during the 1973/74 academic year, this exchange has grown in size, range of academic disciplines, & geographic dispersion in the USSR. From the outset, this exchange has been a beneficiary of good US-USSR relations. Its current vigorous condition & future development are also dependent on these relations. HA

A case study of negotiations between US President Ronald Reagan & Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev during the 1985 Geneva talks & 1986 summits regarding the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), focusing on characteristics of the Soviet negotiation style. Specific tactics are described, including: a preference for generally worded agreements, attempts to place the burden of compromise on the US, & dramatization of the concessions they have made. Various historical & cultural factors that have shaped the Soviet style are identified along with how these determine what the Soviets see as the purpose of negotiations: to maximize their world power & influence, improve relations with Western Europe & Japan, & maintain their strategic security. Despite the fact that Gorbachev is more radical & open than his predecessors & appears eager to reduce his country's military influence & spending, it is argued that top military leaders & conservative elites will exert great pressure on him not to assume a position of "weakness" in dealing with the US. Suggestions are offered to guide US leaders in their negotiations with the USSR. 23 References. K. Hyatt

Topics include: prospects for settling border disputes and removing some of the troops arrayed along both sides of the boundary; economic and cultural ties; the need for both countries to focus attention on their economies; increasing Chinese participation in American-Soviet affairs.