The Foreign Service Journal, January-February 2021

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2021 11 The Canadian delegation, some six to eight strong, was to consult with Finnish producers of pulp and paper machinery with an eye to supply Newfoundland with equipment for a new facility to produce pulp and paper, using the abundant wood from the province’s forests. In fact, the visit was a sham, to divert attention from an oil refinery project that was being opposed by the environmental movement in Newfoundland. The delega- tion was to generate publicity about the proposed pulp and paper plant for the folks back home. Newfoundland Premier Joseph Small- wood led the delegation, and he made a couple of speeches and held a press con- ference. But the focus of attention was on the delegation’s legal counsel, former Vice President Richard Nixon, then practicing law in New York City. Nixon made sure he generated pub- licity on behalf of his clients, but he was clearly underemployed. As the embassy liaison, I spent lots of time with the del- egation, especially with the former vice president, much of it one on one. Nixon struck up a dialog with me, much as though I were an important person. He quizzed me about my origins, education, posts, etc. He might as well have been interviewing a prospective delegate to the 1968 Republican Convention. He was not shy about listing his own foreign policy experience. He regaled me with tales of his travels, particularly his experience dealing with the Soviets, inevitably recalling his famous “Kitchen Debate” with Nikita Khrushchev at a U.S. trade show in Moscow in the late 1950s. “That reminds me,” he said. “Since we’re so close, I wonder if it would be possible to extend our trip andmake a visit toMos- cow? I think we could afford a fewmore days, but of course we’d have to get visas on short notice. That could be a hitch.”