Dubinin Tells Graduates Cold War Is Out of Date

Departing Soviet Ambassador Yuri V. Dubinin, the first Moscow envoy to speak at a U.S. college commencement, Sunday told graduates of George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs that they will have the task of “shaping a new international order to replace the one made by the Cold War.”

“Over the years, our best political minds have thought of ways to deceive or to defeat each other,” Dubinin told the class of 1990 at the school here. “Now, we think of each other not as adversaries but as partners.

“Perhaps for the first time,” the ambassador added, “mankind has the opportunity to rid itself of ideological and military confrontation of states . . . to address the problems we face. These include not only eliminating the nuclear threat but also protecting the environment, fighting drug abuse and establishing economic cooperation.”

Dubinin recalled the prediction of the 19th-Century French historian Alexis de Tocqueville that the two great nations of the world, the Russians and the Anglo-Americans, would attain the same goal, although starting from greatly different points.

“Today, this visionary prediction may well be coming true,” he said. “I am sure that the summit meeting of Presidents (Mikhail S.) Gorbachev and Bush coming up in two weeks on American soil will be a major step in the process of bringing our two nations closer together.”

Hailed as the emissary of glasnost and perestroika because his tour here coincided with revolutionary changes at home and in Eastern Europe, Dubinin on Sunday displayed the deft political touch that has made him one of the capital’s most popular diplomats.

Dubinin won applause when he claimed membership in the class of 1990 himself by virtue of his four-year tour, declaring, “Our class is starting out in a new world, which is changing rapidly as never before.”

Dubinin also demonstrated his proficiency in the American art of working the crowd, staying for nearly an hour after the commencement exercise to talk to the more than 150 recipients of degrees and their families at a reception.

He referred to the event as his last official ceremony here. He is scheduled to leave Tuesday for his new post as ambassador to France.