The 1988 Brussels summit was the 8th

NATO summit A NATO summit is a summit meeting that is regarded as a periodic opportunity for heads of state and heads of government of NATO member countries to evaluate and provide strategic direction for Alliance activities. NATO summits are not regular ...

bringing the leaders of member nations together at the same time. The formal sessions and informal meetings in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, Belgium took place on 2–3 March 1988.

Background

In this period, the organization faced unresolved questions concerned whether a new generation of leaders would be as committed to NATO as their predecessors had been.Thomas, Ian Q.R. (1997)
''The promise of alliance: NATO and the political imagination,'' p. 101.
/ref> Generational change in the leadership of the Soviet Union brought Mikhail Gorbachev to the international stage; but NATO leaders were increasingly uneasy about how to respond to his personable qualities. British Prime Minister

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

counseled that it was probably a good idea to "do business" with him, but other NATO leaders were uncertain about what Gorbachev's openness might be hiding. These fears were minimized by the Soviet announcement that troops were going to be withdrawn from Afghanistan. The unilateral withdraw of 500,000 troops and 10,000 tanks from Eastern Europe sent an unmistakable message of change.Thomas
p. 142.
/ref>

Agenda

The general discussions focused on the need for a reaffirmation of the purpose and principles of the Alliance. Other informal meetings explored what NATO's posture should be in its objectives for East-West relations.

Accomplishments

The summit's work was directed towards adoption of a blueprint for strengthening stability in the whole of Europe through conventional arms control negotiations.

Notes

References

* Thomas, Ian Q.R. (1997)
''The Promise of Alliance: NATO and the Political Imagination.''
Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield. ;

External links