" In the meantime , Deng had been given time off from criticism sessions to carry on negotiations with Henry Kissinger and later with President Gerald Ford . During three days of lengthy meetings with Kissinger to prepare the Ford visit , from October 20 -22 , Deng and Kissinger exchanged views on global developments . Deng scarcely let kissinger make his initial presentation before pressing him with pointed questions : How much grain are you selling to the Soviet Union ? How much modern U.S. equipment and technology are you passing on to the Soviet Union ? What is your assessment of the Helsinki Conference ( in which the United States was promoting detente between Western Europe and the Communist bloc ) ? Deng then spelled out the experience of Chamberlain and Daladier trying to appease Hitler on the eve of WWII . The lesson : because Britain and France gave a weak response to Hitler's initial forays , Hitler attacked to the West . To stop a threat , one needs to make a firm
response , he advised , and the United States is now giving a weak response . The Soviet Union , he said , is now stronger than the United States and Western Europe combined . The Soviet Union has two weaknesses : it needs grain and technology , and the United States is helping with both , helping resolve its weaknesses and thus increasing the risk of a Soviet attack . Zhou had been accused of being a capitulationist , but when attendees at this session would report to Mao , it would be hard to find evidence that Deng could be seen in a similar light . "
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/books/review/deng-xiaoping-and-the-transformat...
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