The Meaning of a U.S.-Russia Summit in Helsinki
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin will meet in the capital of Finland, a place with a long history as a site of pivotal encounters between their countries.
HELSINKI—In 1975, representatives from the United States, Soviet Union, and 33 other nations gathered in the capital of Finland to help defuse mounting tensions over nuclear weapons, human rights, and military posturing. The summit was the brainchild of Urho Kekkonen, then the president of Finland, who had successfully toed the narrow line between the East and the West. The Helsinki Final Act, the product of the summit, would prove pivotal in not only improving relations between the United States and the Soviet Union: It made a lasting impact on the architecture of the European security framework.
History has a way of repeating itself.On Thursday, the White House
