World: Russia: Toward a Global Reach

RICHARD NIXON'S show-the-flag visit to the Mediterranean is an indirect tribute to the boldness of recent Soviet strategy. Since the debacle of the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, the Russians have managed to challenge the U.S. Sixth Fleet as the paramount naval power in the area, to loosen Washington's already tenuous diplomatic foothold in the Arab world, and to establish a disturbing Communist presence along most of the southern flank of NATO. The Soviets have managed these feats by deploying a large, modern naval force in the Mediterranean, and by artfully cementing relations with regimes...