Facing A World of Worries

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China. Peking has been threatening to downgrade relations with the U.S. out of displeasure over American sales of military equipment to Taiwan. Reaganauts point out that the current proposed sale, involving a mere $60 million worth of spare parts, is the bare minimum required by the Taiwan Relations Act, and much lower than sales that the Carter Administration made without arousing any Chinese protest. One reason: hard-liners are pressing pragmatists among Peking's leaders to show that they can be tough in dealing with the U.S. The Chinese also remember Reagan's many campaign pledges of loyalty to Taiwan. Vice President George Bush, a former envoy to China, may stop in Peking during a Far Eastern tour this week, but it seems unlikely that he will be able to talk the Chinese into a more reasonable attitude.

Reagan's embrace of the "zero option" on intermediate-range nuclear weapons in Europe and his Caribbean Basin Initiative of increased aid, trade and investment have won applause from friendly nations. But even these initiatives came late, in response to the pressure of events, and they are far from outweighing the situations that have been allowed to drift. Part of the problem is Haig. The Secretary has always swung between a cool, unflappable demeanor and irascible outbursts. Strangely, even as he has overcome most of his rivals for pre-eminence in foreign policy, the brittle side of his character has become more visible. Stories abound in Washington about his belittling of subordinates; he is said to have called Stoessel "a burned-out case." Haig's morning staff meetings, says one official, sometimes turn into "a monologue about who is undermining him."

More important to the substance of foreign policy, says one subordinate, "Haig has a tendency to stir the pot, then turn that problem over to someone else while he finds another pot to stir." Meanwhile, the Secretary keeps the details of foreign troubles largely to himself, giving his aides inadequate guidance on handling those problems to which he is not devoting his efforts. Indeed, the broadest charge against Haig also reflects his greatest strength: he is a doer rather than a thinker. He is a man of action who learned the operational skills of diplomacy from his mentor in the Nixon Administration, Henry Kissinger, but who basically lacks Kissinger's vision of global strategy. In this sense, his epic shuttle showed him both at his strongest—striving to mediate an explosive confrontation—and at his weakest, because he was not home minding the global aspects of U.S. policy.

The final responsibility for the foreign policy dilemma rests, of course, with the President, who to date has limited himself to enunciating broad policy principles and establishing friendly personal relations with foreign leaders. Asked to enumerate U.S. diplomatic successes, Reagan invariably mentions the stream of visiting heads of government and state to whom he has played gracious host. Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands was the latest. Reagan welcomed her last week at a White House ceremony featuring a review of a new fife-and-drum corps dressed in white wigs and red coats.