That joy. however. is tempered by two important facts. First. while these 15 refuseniks and their families rejoice today. their release follows years of suffering in the Soviet Union. waiting and hoping that they might be released. All those released have been waiting for exit visas for at least a decade. In addition. they leave behind tens of thousands of refuseniks who are still denied permission to emigrate. Soviet officials have allowed 4.700 Jews to emigrate this year. a figure much higher than the 1.000 exit visas approved annually in recent years. However. 51.000 were allowed to leave in 1979. Second. their release comes only days before Secretary Schultz is to meet with Foreign Minister Shevardnadze in Washington. As such. it is unlikely to signal any kind of genuine change in Soviet emigration policy. Instead. it appears to be a diplomatic gesture. trying to generate good will in the upcoming talks and in the possible United StatesSoviet arms control summit. How should we respond to the Soviet Unions gesture?
Keywords matched
emigrate emigration visas