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Kissinger's life was a diplomatic stain on US foreign policy
Story by John Barry •
12/07/23
In Brief...
Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, a key figure in Nixon and Ford administrations, has passed away at the age of 100.
Kissinger's legacy is marked by controversies, including his involvement in the Vietnam War with secret bombings in Cambodia and Laos, the Chilean coup supporting Pinochet, and alleged insufficient response during the East Timor crisis.
Supporters credit Kissinger for diplomatic brilliance, paving the way for U.S.-China relations, while critics label him a symbol of Machiavellian foreign policy, prompting ongoing discussions about the ethics of his decisions.
Last week was the end of an error, as former U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Advisor, Henry Kissinger, passed away at the age of 100. The news of his death will for sure ignite discussions about his complicated legacy, with some in the war-for-profit deep-state hailing him as a skilled diplomat while others denounce him as a a war criminal.
Kissinger, born in 1923 in Germany, rose to notoriety during the Nixon and Ford administrations, where he played a pivotal role in shaping U.S. foreign policy during a tumultuous period in global affairs. However, his legacy is marred by a series of controversial decisions that continue to spark debate.
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Henry A. Kissinger, U.S. Secretary of State, September 22, 1973 to January 20, 1977
Henry A. Kissinger, U.S. Secretary of State, September 22, 1973 to January 20, 1977
© U.S. Department of State/United States
Vietnam & Kissinger's Secret Wars in Cambodia & Laos
One of the most contentious aspects of Kissinger's tenure was his involvement in the Vietnam War and the secret bombing campaigns not only in Cambodia but also in Laos. Critics argue that these clandestine bombings, conducted without Congressional approval, resulted in civilian casualties and raised questions about the legality of such actions. Kissinger's supporters, on the other hand, credit him with diplomatic efforts that led to the eventual normalization of relations with China.
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Kissinger and President Richard Nixon discussing the Vietnam situation in Camp David, 1972 (with Alexander Haig)
Kissinger and President Richard Nixon discussing the Vietnam situation in Camp David, 1972 (with Alexander Haig)
© U.S. National Archives/Records Administration
Chilean Coup
The Chilean coup in 1973 remains another stain on Kissinger's legacy. He supported the overthrow of President Salvador Allende on September 11, and the subsequent installation of General Augusto Pinochet, a move that contributed to a dark chapter in Chilean history marked by human rights abuses including mass disappearances and killings. Kissinger's defenders contend that his actions were in line with Cold War geopolitics and the containment of communism, but even the CIA has started admitting its wrongs in this chapter of history.
Documents reveal that during a meeting with President Suharto in Jakarta on December 6, 1975, Secretary of State Kissinger gave tacit approval for the invasion of East Timor. The meeting occurred just hours before the Indonesian military launched the operation. The U.S. administration, under Kissinger's influence, continued to provide military and diplomatic support to Indonesia despite knowing about the ongoing human rights abuses and atrocities committed by the Indonesian military in East Timor. The Indonesian invasion led to a brutal occupation that resulted in significant loss of life. Estimates of the death toll during the occupation vary, but it is widely acknowledged to be a humanitarian tragedy. The international community, including the United Nations, strongly condemned the invasion and subsequent occupation.
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Suharto with Gerald Ford and Kissinger in Jakarta on December 6, 1975, one day before the Indonesian invasion of East Timor
Suharto with Gerald Ford and Kissinger in Jakarta on December 6, 1975, one day before the Indonesian invasion of East Timor
© David Hume Kennerly/Courtesy Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library. White House Photographs, December 6, 1975
While Kissinger's supporters emphasize his strategic brilliance and contributions to international relations, detractors see him as a symbol of a Machiavellian approach to foreign policy, where the ends justify the means. In his attempt to beat out Communists and Leftists, he supported things worse than any Communist dictator.
Related video: Criticisms of Henry Kissinger are ‘deeply unfair’: Mike Pompeo (FOX News)
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Criticisms of Henry Kissinger are ‘deeply unfair’: Mike Pompeo
As the news of Kissinger's passing circulates, the legacy of this influential figure will undoubtedly be revisited, reexamined, and debated. Whether viewed as a diplomatic maestro or a foreign policy villain, Henry Kissinger's impact on U.S. history remains indelible, leaving a complex narrative that historians and analysts will continue to dissect in the years to come.
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Kissinger’s Failures Mirrored Those of His Realpolitik Heroes
Story by Paul Poast •
There has perhaps been no more polarizing figure in the realm of U.S. foreign policy than Henry Kissinger, who died last week at age 100. His realpolitik approach undoubtably led to some success. But it also led Kissinger to advocate for policies whose moral grounding was dubious and whose foreign policy value was questionable.
There has perhaps been no more polarizing figure in the realm of U.S. foreign policy than Henry Kissinger, who died last week at age 100. His realpolitik approach undoubtably led to some success. But it also led Kissinger to advocate for policies whose moral grounding was dubious and whose foreign policy value was questionable.
© Provided by World Politics Review
There has perhaps been no more polarizing figure in the realm of U.S. foreign policy than Henry Kissinger. In the week since his death at age 100, the opinions expressed about the former U.S. national security adviser and secretary of state have been as varied as they have been passionate.
Kissinger has been vociferously praised and vehemently scorned. Some have labeled him a “war criminal,” while others characterized him as an ingenious grand strategist. Some have said that he was a towering figure of the 20th century who must be taken seriously, while others maintain that he wasn’t all that remarkable and will soon be forgotten. Still others have acknowledged that his legacy is complicated.
Kissinger entered the top echelon of the U.S. foreign policy establishment at a critical time, serving from 1969 to 1975 as national security adviser to former Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, and from 1973 to 1977 as secretary of state to both as well. For most of that time, the U.S. was engulfed in the Vietnam War, a core theater of the broader Cold War competition between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Just a few years earlier, that competition had nearly brought the two superpowers to the brink of nuclear Armageddon during the 1962 Cuban Missile crisis.
On top of such security perils, U.S. economic power was being tested, as countries grew weary of U.S. domination of the global economy. This resentment was epitomized by then-French Finance Minister Valery Giscard d’Estaing’s remarks in 1965 about the U.S. dollar’s role in the post-World War II Bretton Woods monetary system, which he famously characterized as an “exorbitant privilege.” It also contributed to countries seeking to assert control over vital economic resources, as with the formation and development of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, in the 1960s and 1970s.
It was in the face of these challenges that Kissinger, until then a professor of international relations at Harvard, stepped into the foreign policymaking fray. During his eight years at the helm of U.S. diplomacy, he pursued an approach best described as realpolitik, by which national interests and protection of the state supersede all other considerations. In Kissinger’s view specifically and realpolitik more generally, there is no space for ethical qualms or ideological purity. As the historian John Bew wrote in his intellectual history of realpolitik, “If Machiavelli is commonly understood to be the father of Realpolitik, Kissinger himself is assumed to be its most prominent torchbearer in the modern era.”
Such an approach to foreign policy undoubtably led to some success, if success is measured in lowering the possibility of major power conflict. Kissinger played an important if somewhat overstated role in normalizing relations between the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China. He also facilitated negotiations of arms control with the Soviet Union and generally sought to foster the policy of d;tente to make sure the Cold War remained cold. In both instances, he set aside ideology for the sake of ensuring that great power competition did not result in the nightmare scenario narrowly avoided in the standoff over Cuban-based Soviet missiles in 1962.
Kissinger’s realpolitik approach to foreign policy led him to advocate for policies whose moral grounding was at best dubious and whose foreign policy value was at most questionable.
As Kissinger explained in an interview at the time of the 20th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, while he did not think the Soviets would have risked war over the crisis, he did see the standoff as having been a key factor driving the Soviets’ subsequent buildup of their nuclear arsenal. That buildup, in turn, raised the chances of instability and conflict between the superpowers. While Kissinger did receive, quite controversially, a Nobel Peace Prize for his role in brokering the end of the U.S. war in Vietnam, he could have just as easily, and less controversially, been awarded the prize for his efforts with China and the Soviet Union.
But his realpolitik approach to foreign policy also led Kissinger to advocate for policies whose moral grounding was at best dubious and whose foreign policy value was at most questionable. The litany of atrocities attributed to or enabled by Kissinger is long, ranging from undermining earlier peace talks in Vietnam to supporting repressive regimes in Latin America.
Perhaps most notorious is Kissinger’s role in the U.S. bombing campaigns of Cambodia and Laos during the Vietnam War. The rationale underlying the bombing was to disrupt supply lines feeding North Vietnamese forces fighting U.S. troops in South Vietnam—the famous Ho Chi Minh Trail. Kissinger was involved not only in supporting and justifying the campaign, but in personally approving individual targets of a seemingly punitive nature. The bombing campaign killed thousands of Cambodian civilians and fomented support for the ultra-communist Khmer Rouge movement, which perpetrated a genocide in the country once it gained power.
This episode was both a human tragedy but also a strategic failure. In addition to fueling the communist takeover of Cambodia, the bombing campaign did little to stem the flow of North Vietnamese weapons and supplies into South Vietnam. Reflecting on his experience as a bomber pilot during the Vietnam War, Merrill A. McPeak aptly observed, “We blasted a big chunk of Laos, the 600-year-old monarchy, the Land of a Million Elephants, to bony, lunar dust. Yet somehow the Ho Chi Minh Trail, itself the enemy, was always there. Killing it was like trying to put socks on an octopus.” Indeed, the episode can serve as Exhibit A for why strategic bombing is largely ineffective against an adversary using guerilla warfare tactics.
To be fair to Kissinger, one can level the strategic failure criticism on many foreign policy decisions. From former President Barack Obama’s last-minute refusal to bomb Syria following his “red line” remark to President Joe Biden’s poor handling of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, foreign policy blunders are often the result of leaders choosing what they see as the least-bad option, rather than them foregoing an obvious path to an optimal outcome.
Kissinger’s pursuit of a realpolitik approach to foreign policy would have been familiar to 19th-century diplomatic figures like Otto Von Bismarck, Robert Castlereagh and Klemens Von Metternich, about whom Kissinger famously wrote during his pre-government time as an academic. Interestingly, however, Kissinger’s academic writing itself betrays more of an idealistic bent. His work—notably the book that grew out of his doctoral dissertation, “A World Restored”—pointed to great-power diplomacy and institution-building as instruments for maintaining peace. His approach to both China and the Soviet Union during his time in office suggests that he wished to apply the academic lesson of great power cooperation, not competition, to his policy work.
He admired what Metternich and Castlereagh achieved and the diplomatic skill wielded by both figures to achieve and sustain it. But he also recognized that both figures committed diplomatic missteps. In the conclusion of “A World Restored,” Kissinger wrote of them that “each failed as he succeeded.” He was so right, not just about them, but about himself.
Paul Poast is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Chicago and a nonresident fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
The post Kissinger’s Failures Mirrored Those of His Realpolitik Heroes appeared first on World Politics Review.
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Honoring and Remembering Henry Kissinger
Story by Callista L. Gingrich •
Honoring and Remembering Henry Kissinger
© AP
Former Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger was an extraordinary man. He was the most influential and creative diplomat and statesman in modern American history.
His foreign relations with China, Russia, and Vietnam represented a complicated strategic synergism. Only a team such as President Richard Nixon and Secretary Kissinger could have made this complex balancing act succeed. As a result, Kissinger got the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end the Vietnam War.
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Dr. Kissinger developed an unrivaled capacity for diplomatic strategic thinking and implementation based on many experiences throughout his life. He earned a doctorate from Harvard and wrote a series of important books on a wide range of complex topics. He was senior adviser to Gov. Nelson Rockefeller for the 1960, 1964, and 1968 presidential campaigns. Kissinger served as national security adviser to President Nixon – and then as Secretary of State for both Presidents Nixon and Gerald Ford. After he retired from public office, Dr. Kissinger became an informal (but crucially influential) adviser to Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton.
We knew Dr. Kissinger as a friend and as an adviser. He was always generous with his time and thoughtful in his advice and counsel.
Just this year, we interviewed Dr. Kissinger about his life for a three-part documentary series called “Journey to America.” This new series highlights immigrants who came to America by legal means and increased the exceptional nature of our country. As a testament to the American Dream, Dr. Kissinger, who came to the U.S. from Europe as a 15-year-old, was the perfect guest for our new series.
Related video: Criticisms of Henry Kissinger are ‘deeply unfair’: Mike Pompeo (FOX News)
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Dr. Kissinger was born in Furth, Germany on May 27, 1923. When he was nine years old, Adolph Hitler came into power. As a Young Jew, Dr. Kissinger was constantly threatened and attacked by Nazis. Finally, in 1938, at the age of 15, he and his family left the growing antisemitism and violence of Nazi Germany and migrated to America.
Dr. Kissinger was deeply affected by the openness of America and the opportunity to work hard and improve yourself. In 1943, at the age of 20, he became a naturalized citizen while serving in the U.S. Army. His fluent German and brilliant mind helped him become an intelligence officer who interrogated the Gestapo and German soldiers. He also was assigned to run several small German towns during the denazification period.
When Dr. Kissinger returned home to New York, he began an education journey that led him to a Ph.D in history from Harvard. Soon after graduating, he wrote two critically important books. “A World Restored” was about Austria-Hungarian Foreign Minister Klemens von Metternich’s work after the defeat of Napoleon and the use of diplomacy to establish stability. Dr. Kissinger then wrote the book which established his national reputation. In “Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy,” he argued against the nuclear weapon doctrine of the time. Dr. Kissinger advocated the use of tactical nuclear weapons as a way of avoiding using massive hydrogen bombs.
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Dr. Kissinger and President Nixon formed a remarkable team. Nixon was strategic in his thinking and wanted to find a way to stabilize the world to maximize American security. They had to deal with the Vietnam War (so that America had a reasonable chance to win). They had to prepare for the growing strength of the Soviet Union. And they reversed the American policy of refusing to recognize the Chinese Communist dictatorship. Instead, they sought to find a method for Washington and Beijing to work together. Dr. Kissinger and President Nixon reasoned that an American-Chinese rapprochement would put enormous pressure on Russia – and ultimately dramatically increase the American position as the balance between the other two countries.
The amazing thing about the Nixson-Kissinger team was their ability to simultaneously handle three or four big strategic issues at once. Imagine thinking through effectively dealing with Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party after a generation of hostility and isolation – while also finding a way to expand and deepen ties to Moscow and the Soviet dictatorship. (Kissinger negotiated the first strategic arms limitation treaty). All the while, they were working through the military, political and diplomatic complexities of negotiating with the North Vietnamese and reassuring our allies in the South.
Dr. Kissinger had the brainpower, strategic mindset, management skills, and sheer energy to handle all three while working with President Nixon.
After Dr. Kissinger left office, he developed an advisory business, Kissinger Associates. He remained amazingly active as he wrote books, gave speeches, advised clients on government issues, and travelled around the world.
Even in his late 90s, when we would see Dr. Kissinger, he would recount his latest dinner with Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping (he dined at least once a year with each of them). His travel schedule and energy level were simply amazing and his effortless ability to earn the respect of every person he met was a genuine art form.
The world is a better place because of Dr. Henry Kissinger. We will miss him.
This article was adapted from Gingrich 360 – a multimedia production company based in Arlington, Virginia, featuring the work of Speaker Newt Gingrich and Ambassador Callista L. Gingrich. For more commentary from Callista Gingrich and Newt Gingrich, visit Gingrich360.com.
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Kissinger's close friends reveal firsthand glimpse into the life and career of the diplomatic giant
Story by Madeline Coggins •
FOX News
Criticisms of Henry Kissinger are ‘deeply unfair’: Mike Pompeo
Although he didn't want controversy, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had a storied career in politics and spent much of his adult life in the public eye. His close friends are now shedding light on the man behind the diplomat.
"Most of the criticisms of Dr. Kissinger are deeply unfair. He was a powerful man who cared about America," former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on FOX Nation's "Kissinger" special.
The German-born American diplomat, academic and presidential adviser who served as secretary of state for two presidents and left his stamp on U.S. foreign policy for decades, died last week at the age of 100.
FOX Nation's special "Kissinger" takes a closer look at the dominating foreign policy figure through the eyes of close friends K.T. McFarland, Mike Pompeo and Niall Ferguson.
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE HENRY KISSINGER DEAD AT 100
Kissinger was born Heinz Alfred Kissinger in Germany, on May 27, 1923. His family later fled the Nazis and arrived in the U.S. when he was 15.
Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has passed away yesterday
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KT McFarland: Kissinger laid groundwork for a generation of Middle East peace
His breakout in global politics came in 1969 when he was appointed national security adviser to President Richard Nixon. From there, he rose to the position of secretary of state, serving in both the Nixon and Ford administrations.
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As a diplomat, he was known for being a staunch proponent of realpolitik. Some of his crowning achievements included pushing for peace in the Middle East, helping restore ties between the U.S. and China, and initiating the Paris peace talks that ultimately led to the U.S. getting out of the Vietnam War. He also pushed for the d;tente policy with the Soviet Union.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HENRY KISSINGER, A DOMINANT FIGURE IN GLOBAL AFFAIRS IN THE 1970S
Kissinger was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973 for his role in negotiating the Paris Peace Accords to end direct U.S. military involvement in Vietnam and an end to the war.
"He was always able to look at an issue not from only the perspective of the United States and our interests, but what about the other country? What did they need? What did that leader need for his own domestic purposes, for his own foreign policy?" Former deputy national security adviser K.T. McFarland said during the FOX Nation special.
"And that was why Kissinger, I think, was so ultimately successful."
McFarland, who first met Kissinger at 18 while working as his nighttime secretary in the White House situation room, described the diplomat as first a boss, then a mentor and finally a friend.
The liberal media full of scorn and hatred for this
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Why are they calling Kissinger a war criminal?: Jesse Watters
Pompeo met Kissinger around 2013 after he was nominated for CIA director and said the former National Security Council head was a great mentor.
"His wisdom was enormously important. His insights proved, over the course of four years, incredibly valuable to me," Pompeo said.
Despite his impressive portfolio, Kissinger was not without criticism. He acquired a reputation as a ladies’ man and was also accused of needlessly prolonging the Vietnam War at the cost of tens of thousands of American lives.
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Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger takes in the game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox on August 28, 2007 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City. Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger takes in the game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox on August 28, 2007 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City. Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
© Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
While there were other criticisms, "Kissinger 1923 to 1968: The Idealist" author Niall Ferguson claimed the leader's legacy could not be simplified as a "saintly figure" or "Bond villain."
"You can't really just portray Henry Kissinger as either a saintly figure, Super K, the ultimate diplomat. Nor can you portray him simply as a kind of Bond villain, that Dr. Evil figure, as some of his critics like to do. These two versions are just wild oversimplifications," he said.
Kissinger made history during his lifetime, and his legacy continues to leave an impact on U.S. and foreign policy. To catch a glimpse at the life of a defining figure in 20th century world affairs, watch FOX Nation's "Kissinger," now streaming.
Fox Nation programs are viewable on-demand and from your mobile device app, but only for Fox Nation subscribers. Go to Fox Nation to start a free trial and watch the extensive library from your favorite Fox Nation personalities.
FOX News' Adam Sabes contributed to this report.
Original article source: Kissinger's close friends reveal firsthand glimpse into the life and career of the diplomatic giant