War And Peace

By Raisa Gorbachev

/ The more we learn about the life of the peoples of our countries today, their concerns and their aspirations, the sooner we will have a better understanding of one another.

I retain warm memories of the meetings I had with American women in Moscow and Washington in December 1987. What are my impressions as a result of those meetings? Quite a number of differences stand between us. But I feel that they in no way hinder discussions of any problems that are of concern to us: how to preserve peace, how to make the life of every individual on earth worthy of our times. We had many interesting discussions about the role of women in society and family, and about what should be done to make their participation in society harmonious with their indispensable role as keeper of the hearth and home.

In the heroic and dramatic history of my country, Soviet women have written many pages that our people are proud of and that are marked by striking selflessness and self-sacrifice, by boundless kindness and charity. How many personal tragedies were inflicted on women by World War II! Millions of them never experienced love, family happiness or the joys of motherhood. Our women know the price of war and peace. They are ardent and convinced champions of peace.

Today the Soviet woman is proud of her participation in perestroika, in the renewal of society. There are grounds for this. Perestroika is distinguished by a vigorous social policy. This is very important for improving people's everyday life and family life and for the upbringing of children. This policy provides women with greater opportunities to practice their chosen profession, to go about their favorite pursuits and -- not least important -- to take good care of themselves in order to remain an equal and desired loved one, wife and mother for many years to come.

I sincerely wish the readers of TIME, all American women and their families peaceful and clear skies over our planet, and happiness.