Détente is the easing of strained relations in a political situation, through verbal communication. The term in diplomacy originates around 1912 when France and Germany tried, without success, to reduce tensions. Most the term is used for a phase of the Cold War, it was the policy of relaxing tensions between Moscow and the West, as promoted by Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger and Leonid Brezhnev, 1969 – 1974. With the United States showing weakness at the top that forced Richard Nixon out of office, Brezhnev used the opportunity to expand Soviet influence; the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 decisively ended any talk of détente. The term is most used in reference to a period of general easing of the geo-political tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States, it began in 1969, as a core element of the foreign policy of U. S. president Richard Nixon, in an effort to avoid the collision of nuclear risks. The Nixon administration promoted greater dialogue with the Soviet government, including regular summit meetings and negotiations over arms control and other bilateral agreements.

Détente was known in Russian as разрядка. The period was characterized by the signing of treaties such as the Helsinki Accords. Another treaty, SALT II, was never ratified by the United States. There is still ongoing debate amongst historians as to how successful the détente period was in achieving peace. After the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, the two superpowers agreed to install a direct hotline between Washington D. C. and Moscow, enabling leaders of both countries to interact with each other in a time of urgency, reduce the chances that future crises could escalate into an all-out war. The U. S./USSR détente was presented as an applied extension of that thinking. The SALT II pact of the late 1970s continued the work of the SALT I talks, ensuring further reduction in arms by the Soviets and by the U. S; the Helsinki Accords, in which the Soviets promised to grant free elections in Europe, has been called a major concession to ensure peace by the Soviets. Détente ended after the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, which led to the United States boycott of the 1980 Olympics in Moscow.

Ronald Reagan's election as president in 1980, based in large part on an anti-détente campaign, marked the close of détente and a return to Cold War tensions. In his first press conference, President Reagan said "Détente's been a one-way street that the Soviet Union has used to pursue its aims." Following this, relations turned sour with the unrest in Poland, end of the SALT II negotiations, the NATO exercise in 1983 that brought the superpowers on the brink of nuclear war. The most obvious manifestation of détente was the series of summits held between the leaders of the two superpowers and the treaties that resulted from these meetings. In the early 1960s, before détente, the Partial Test Ban Treaty had been signed on 5 August 1963. In the decade, the Outer Space Treaty, in January 1967, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, July 1968, were two of the first building blocks of détente; these early treaties were signed all over the globe. The most important treaties were not developed until the Nixon Administration came into office in 1969.

The Political Consultative Committee of the Warsaw Pact sent an offer to the West, urging them to hold a summit on "security and cooperation in Europe". The West agreed and talks began towards actual limits in the nuclear capabilities of the two superpowers; this led to the signing of the SALT I treaty in 1972. This treaty limited each power's nuclear arsenals, though it was rendered out-of-date as a result of the development of MIRVs. In the same year that SALT I was signed, the Biological Weapons Convention and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty were concluded. Talks on SALT II began in 1972. Brezhnev however at the start of the period in his speeches to the Politburo, was intent on using the period of relaxed tensions to prepare for Soviet expansion in the 1980s. In 1975, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe met and produced the Helsinki Accords, a wide-ranging series of agreements on economic and human rights issues; the CSCE was initiated by the USSR. Among other issues, one of the most prevalent and discussed after the conference was that of human rights violations in the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Constitution directly violated the Declaration of Human Rights from the United Nations, this issue became a prominent point of separation between the United States and the Soviet Union. The Carter administration had been supporting human rights groups inside the Soviet Union, Leonid Brezhnev accused the administration of interference in other countries' internal affairs; this prompted intense discussion of whether or not other nations may interfere if basic human rights are being violated, such as freedom of speech and religion. The basic disagreement in the philosophies of a democracy and a single-party was in a state that did not allow for reconciliation of this issue. Furthermore, the Soviets proceeded to defend their internal policies on human rights by attacking American support of countries like South Africa and Chile, which were known to violate many of the same human rights issues. In July of the same year, the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project became the first international space mission, wherein three American astronauts and two Soviet cosmonauts docked their spacecraft and conducted joint experiments.

This mission had been preceded by five years of political negotiation and technical co-operation, including

The SIAI-Marchetti S.211 is a turbofan-powered military trainer aircraft designed and marketed by Italian aviation manufacturer SIAI-Marchetti. SIAI-Marchetti started to develop the S-211 in 1976 as a private venture initiative, announcing its existence during the following year. On 10 April 1981, the first prototype performed its maiden flight; the Singapore Air Force placed the first order for ten aircraft in 1983. Some 60 aircraft have been sold to air forces around the world. Following Aermacchi's purchase of SIAI-Marchetti in 1997, the former has held the production rights to the type. An extensively redesigned and modernised derivative, the M-311 has been developed by Alenia Aermacchi, is set to enter service during 2020. During 1976, Italian aircraft company SIAI-Marchetti commenced work on what would become the S-211. SIAI-Marchetti planned to offer the type to the company's existing customer base, consisting of various air forces around the world that operated their SF.260, a piston-engined trainer.

The programme's existence was formally announced in Paris during 1977 customer interest was strong enough to justify the construction of two prototypes, the first of which flew on 10 April 1981. During 1983, the Singapore Air Force placed the first order for the S-211, procuring a batch of ten aircraft; the S-211A was a modified and updated variant of the S-211, was a losing contender in the United States Air Force's Joint Primary Aircraft Training System aircraft selection. Among the seven aircraft to enter, the Raytheon/Pilatus entry emerged as the winner, being produced as the T-6 Texan II; the S-211 team was partnered with American aircraft company Grumman. During 1997, rival Italian aviation firm Aermacchi acquired SIAI-Marchetti and thereby the S-211. Aermacchi has continued to seek customers for the type. In 2004, the company announced its intention to develop an improved version of the S-211 referred to as the S-311. At the time, Aermacchi was developing the M-346 Master, which serves as a lead-in fighter trainer.

The S-211 is a compact two-seat shoulder-wing monoplane. It is furnished with a retractable tricycle landing gear and is powered by a single Pratt & Whitney Canada JT15D-4C turbofan powerplant; the S-211 has been principally used as a basic trainer aircraft, the student and instructor being seated in a tandem arrangement. Additionally, the aircraft was designed to perform a secondary close air support capability, being equipped with four underwing hard points, facilitating the carriage of various armaments and other external stores, including sensor apparatus and photographic equipment for undertaking aerial reconnaissance missions; some models feature an additional hard point on the underside of the fuselage. The airframe is composed of several composite materials, which includes Kevlar and carbon fibre, while extensive use of structural bonding was made during construction; the flight controls feature manually operated push-pull rod primary controls. The electrical system consists of a 28V DC supply, being powered by an engine-driven generator, an AC supply for instruments and avionics is provided via a pair of inverters.

For greater crew comfort, an automatically adjusting environmental control system is installed. The avionics of the S-211 were designed to be customisable, allowing the manufacturer to accommodate a customer's various mission requirements. In a typical configuration, the aircraft would be provided a VHF/UHF communications suite, multiple navigation systems, such as an attitude and heading reference system, horizontal situation indicator, automatic direction finding, VHF omnidirectional range and instrument landing system, a tactical air navigation system and identification friend or foe transponder. Operators can choose to have their S-211s outfitted with modern glass cockpits; the S-211's single JTI5D-4C engine provides a maximum thrust output of 2,500 lbs and a specific fuel consumption of 0.57 lb/h/lb. This powerplant facilitates a maximum speed of 414 knots at 25,000 ft and a rate of climb of 5,100 ft per minute. Fuel is housed internally within both the integral wing tank and a bladder cell within the fuselage, accommodating a combined 210 U.

S. gallons. S. gallons. Fuel is transferred to the engine via a double-ended turbine pump. Ground refuelling in

Edgars Vinters was a Latvian painter. Born in Riga, Edgars Vinters was the only child of the facade and decoration painter Hermanis Vinters and his wife Anna, née Kalniņa; as a ten-year-old boy he met with the popular pastelist Voldemārs Irbe, who detected the boy’s talent, taught him the basics of pastel painting and opened his eyes to the beauty of nature in its so-called minor details. From 1935 on, he wrote small articles for children's and youth magazines, which he illustrated with pen and ink drawings and linocuts. With the money he made, he contributed to the school fee for the commercial college he attended until 1940, after a change of school. Resulting from contact he made with the painter Hugo Kārlis Grotuss, from 1937 Vinters changed his painting style. Grotuss encouraged him to give up ‘the dark phase’ he was in through Irbe, to use brighter primers and to show more briskness and colours in his paintings. A porcelain factory engaged him to paint a series of porcelain plates for president Kārlis Ulmanis.

After he had taken his high-school-diploma, he joined the Latvian Art Academy and until 1944 studied under the professors Jānis Kuga, Leo Svemps, Jānis Cielavs, Valdemārs Tone, Jānis Annuss, Kārlis Miesnieks und Vilhelms Purvītis. In 1944, Vinters had to drop out of his studies. In 1945 he deported to a POW camp near Moscow. There Russian officers made out his artistic abilities and facilitated the establishment of an atelier. During this time Vinters made a series of drawings and paintings, which he for the first time showed to an art lover, who had worked about his life and his works and which were published in an art book in 2012. Back in Riga in 1947, he could teach drafting at a secondary school. At the same time, he attended Janis Rozentāls Art Highschool and got his qualifications in teaching in 1949. Vinters painted objectively landscape painting. Early works from childhood and youth were made with ink pen. In his craft he made aquarelles and, as a speciality during the 1970s, monotypes.

But oil painting remained his prime means of expression for his interpretations of his beloved Latvian landscapes during the seasons, of flowers and townscapes. During the time of the German occupation, Vinters published drawings and aquarelles in German Journals. During the Soviet period, his exhibitions were confined to Riga and other cities of the Latvian Socialist Soviet Republic. After the liberation of Latvia in 1991 his art found attention and appreciation. Periodically exhibitions were organized in Latvia, his works are presented by the art trade worldwide. During a state visit by Turkish President Abdullah Gül on April 2, 2013 in Latvia, the Latvian President Andris Bērziņš presented to the Turkish presidential couple as a gift a painting of Edgars Vinters. In 1951 Vinters married Helma Krause, a teacher and colleague, their only child son Ilmārs was born in 1958. Vinters was buried on May 2, 2014 at the 1st Riga Forest Cemetery in the northeastern part of Riga at the side of his mother.

On November 16, 2009 Edgars Vinters was awarded the Order of the Three Stars by President Valdis Zatlers in recognition of his lifetime achievement. Gallery Hans Joachim Gerber, Ojārs Spārītis: Der lettische Maler Edgars Vinters. Editor: Zvaigzne ABC, Riga 2009.. Hanss Joahims Gerbers, Ojārs Spārītis: Gleznotājs Edgars Vinters. Editor: Zvaigzne ABC, Riga 2009.. Günter Grass, Ojārs Spārītis, Hans Joachim Gerber: Es vēlos mājās pārnākt. Edgars Vinters. Editor: Zvaigzne ABC, Riga 2012. Hans Joachim Gerber, Ojārs Spārītis: Edgars Vinters - gaisma, krāsas, noskaņas / Licht, Stimmungen Apgāds Zvaizne, Riga 2019, ISBN 978-9934-0-8452-2 On June 10, 2017 the Edgars Vinters Studio has been opened in Dunte / Latvia. In an annex to the Munchausen Museum oil paintings and monotypes show examples of Edgars Vinters' life work. In addition, a series of photos describes the life of the artist, film excerpts show the artist painting'pleinair'. Priekš Latvijas - VISU!. 1998, Latvian film of Ilmārs Krū Zakss Notes