Henry Kissinger

Born May 27, 1923
Fürth, Germany

U.S. secretary of state and
national security advisor

G erman-born Henry Kissinger was a major influence on U.S. foreign policy through most of the Cold War. He worked as an author and as a consultant to various federal agencies and later became national security advisor and secretary of state. He was the architect of détente, the policy of easing tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. He led the effort to reestablish formal relations with communist China, and he was a key negotiator of the peace settlement in the Vietnam War (1954–75). He was awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for facilitating the peace agreement. Kissinger also negotiated the first strategic arms limitation treaty (SALT I) with the Soviet Union, which was signed in 1972.

An international beginning

Henry Kissinger was born in Fürth, Germany, in 1923 to an Orthodox Jewish family. In 1938, the family emigrated from Germany to escape persecution of Jews by the Nazi Party (known primarily for its brutal policies of racism). The Kissingers first went to England and then to New York City. Kissinger attended City College in New York and worked in a shaving brush factory to support himself. In 1943, during World War II (1939–45), Kissinger became a naturalized U.S. citizen and was drafted into the U.S. Army. He was assigned to an intelligence, or information-gathering, unit. After the war, he was briefly assigned to a district administrator position in occupied Germany.

Upon returning to the United States, Kissinger entered Harvard University in 1946, where he earned an undergraduate degree with honors in 1950. He went on to earn a Ph.D. in international relations in 1954. In his dissertation, or graduate essay, he analyzed political strategies that had historically been used in Europe and began forming his own ideas on how foreign policy should be conducted. In 1954, Kissinger joined the Harvard staff as an instructor and worked with the Council on Foreign Relations. The council explored alternative foreign policy strategies—that is, strategies that would not involve the massive nuclear retaliation promoted by then–U.S. secretary of state John Foster Dulles (1888–1959; see entry). The council proposed a strategy that included limited use of nuclear weapons and increased spending for conventional forces; this strategy was designed to give the United States more flexibility in responding to crises. In 1957, Kissinger published a book on this subject. Titled Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy, the book established Kissinger as a leading authority on U.S. strategic foreign policy.

Foreign affairs consultant

During the 1950s, Kissinger was a consultant on foreign issues for New York governor Nelson A. Rockefeller (1908–1979) during Rockefeller's unsuccessful bids for the Republican presidential nomination. In 1961, Kissinger published another book, The Necessity for Choice. In this work, he further spelled out his concepts of a flexible response, which emphasized a more balanced development of military capabilities with sufficient conventional forces and smaller nuclear weapons in response to more limited hostilities. President John F. Kennedy (1917–1963; served 1961–63; see entry) adopted Kissinger's ideas in forming his Cold War strategies in early 1961. Around this time, Kissinger became a full professor at Harvard.

At Harvard, Kissinger was involved in various foreign policy development groups, and he acted as a consultant for several federal agencies from 1955 to 1968. From 1959 to 1969, he directed Harvard's Defense Studies Program. From 1961 to 1967, he was a consultant for the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. For the Kennedy administration, he was also advisor to the National Security Council (NSC). Under the administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–1973; served 1963–69; see entry), Kissinger was a consultant to the State Department. During that period, he traveled to South Vietnam to assess the war and determine whether any new strategies could be employed. He returned convinced that the war was necessary to contain communism; he believed that any hasty withdrawal of U.S. forces would lead to a loss of U.S. credibility in the world.

After Republican Richard M. Nixon (1913–1994; served 1969–74; see entry) won the presidential race in November 1968, he recruited Kissinger to be his national security advisor. Over the next few years, Kissinger and Nixon would work very closely together and discover that they shared many of the same perspectives on foreign policy. Nixon required that all information from his secretary of defense and secretary of state come through Kissinger. As a result, Kissinger became the most powerful person in the administration other than the president himself.

Ending the Vietnam War

A top priority for Nixon and Kissinger was to end U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Vietnam had been one of several French colonies in an Asian peninsula called Indochina, which extends from the southeastern border of China into the South China Sea. Following World War II, Ho Chi Minh (1890–1969; see entry) led communist rebel forces in ongoing battles to end French domination in Vietnam. By 1954, the French forces were defeated. As a result of a meeting in Geneva, which included the United States, China, and the Soviet Union, Vietnam was partitioned temporarily into North Vietnam and South Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh's forces controlled North Vietnam, with support from the Soviet Union and communist China. South Vietnam was under Western control.

The Geneva agreement called for national elections to be held in 1956 to establish a single unified government for Vietnam, as well as the other Indochina countries of Laos and Cambodia. The agreement also prohibited any of the three countries from joining military alliances or allowing foreign military bases within their borders. However, the United States objected to communist control of the north and refused to observe the ban on military assistance to South Vietnam. A separate South Vietnamese government was established in 1955, and the United States offered its support.

In response, North Vietnam, along with South Vietnamese rebel forces known as the Vietcong, conducted a civil war to try to gain control of South Vietnam; North Vietnam wanted to unify the country under communist rule. U.S. military assistance to South Vietnam escalated dramatically through the 1960s. By 1967, the United States had over five hundred thousand troops in Vietnam, and U.S. casualties averaged five hundred per week. The war had become highly unpopular among American citizens; peace protesters and staunch supporters of the war clashed in large, nationwide demonstrations. By 1968, it was obvious that the war was not winnable for the United States. Hoping to avoid a humiliation for the United States, Kissinger sought to negotiate a settlement with North Vietnam. However, the North Vietnamese would not accept Kissinger's terms, which included formal recognition of South Vietnam's government. Instead, North Vietnam chose to continue with the war, still hoping to reunify the country.

After the peace talks failed, Kissinger introduced a strategy called Vietnamization. Under this plan, the United States began withdrawing troops and turned the ground war over to the South Vietnamese army. The United States continued to provide training supplies and air power. To give the South Vietnamese forces a boost, Kissinger approved secret bombings of North Vietnamese supply camps in Cambodia. Then, U.S. and South Vietnamese troops entered Cambodia to destroy enemy sanctuaries, or safe places normally protected from attack. Almost all of Kissinger's aides resigned in protest; they were appalled by this congressionally unauthorized invasion. Kissinger's aggressive military tactics damaged his relationships with academic colleagues and members of Congress. He gained a reputation for being arrogant and became a target of antiwar protests.

By 1972, most U.S. troops had been withdrawn from Vietnam. But with the presidential election approaching in November, Nixon insisted that Kissinger achieve a settlement in the war. Nixon hoped that ending the war would increase his chances for reelection. While intense bombing continued, Kissinger reached an apparent agreement in late October. Kissinger made the surprise announcement only days before the election, and Nixon won the election handily. However, the South Vietnamese leaders rejected the agreement, and further talks with North Vietnam broke down in December. Nixon ordered renewed intensive bombing of North Vietnamese cities for eleven days through late December; these are known as the "Christmas Bombings."

By early January, North Vietnam renewed the peace talks, and a cease-fire settlement, very similar to the earlier agreement, was reached. This time, Nixon put pressure on South Vietnam to agree as well. The last U.S. combat troops left Vietnam in late March 1973. Later that year, in October, Kissinger and North Vietnamese negotiator Le Duc Tho (1911–1990) were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. However, Le Duc Tho refused to accept the award on principle because it was offered by a Western country. Despite the settlement, fighting soon resumed between the North Vietnam and South Vietnam forces, which led to the victory in the North in 1975 and reunification of Vietnam under communist rule.

Renewed relations with China

During the first year of Nixon's presidency, the United States and the Communist People's Republic of China (PRC) agreed to pursue improved relations. In July 1971, Kissinger secretly traveled to China to arrange a visit by Nixon. Kissinger was the first U.S. official to visit the Chinese communists since the PRC government was formed in October 1949. At the time of the communist victory, the over-thrown noncommunist Chinese leaders fled to the island of Taiwan and formed a new government called the Republic of China (ROC). For the next few decades, the United States recognized the noncommunist ROC, not the PRC, as the official government of China. During his visit to China, Kissinger indicated that the United States was willing to recognize the noncommunist ROC government as part of one China. The recognition meant the United States did not consider the ROC as a truly independent nation but only part of the greater China that was governed by the PRC; this was a major shift in U.S. perspective and a major victory for the PRC. President Nixon journeyed to the PRC seven months later, in February 1972, to begin the process of renewing official relations.

Détente with the Soviets

Kissinger believed that the United States and the Soviet Union should begin working more closely together. After establishing better U.S. relations with the PRC in 1972, he was determined to ease tensions even further by achieving a balance of power between the two superpowers. Kissinger wanted the United States to move away from its policy of massive retaliation in case of conflict. He preferred Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD), a military strategy in which the

threat of catastrophic damages by a nuclear counterstrike would deter any launch of a first-strike attack. This strategy recognized that both superpowers had sufficient nuclear weapons to destroy each other. The effectiveness of MAD hinged on the superpowers agreeing to hold the same number of nuclear weapons. The balance would deter nuclear war, because any nuclear aggression by either side would be, in effect, assured suicide. Kissinger had begun negotiating a strategic arms limitation agreement in November 1969, hoping to maintain nuclear balance.

Kissinger secretly traveled to Moscow in 1972 with the goal of scheduling a summit meeting between President Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev (1906–1982; see entry) that May. When Nixon arrived in May, he signed several agreements with the Soviets, including SALT I, the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty that Kissinger had initiated in 1969. The other agreements involved cultural and scientific exchanges. Kissinger indicated that if the Soviets could help persuade the North Vietnamese to negotiate for peace, the United States would sign a trade agreement to provide the Soviets much-needed grain. After the Soviets traveled to North Vietnam, Kissinger negotiated a grain sale agreement in September. In October, Nixon and Brezhnev signed another arms control agreement, the ABM Treaty, which restricted defensive antiballistic missile systems. In 1973, Brezhnev journeyed to the United States to further the improved relations between the two superpowers.

While Kissinger was busy improving relations with the PRC and the Soviet Union, U.S. relations with Western European allies were deteriorating. The Western European countries felt left out of the negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union and feared their security was being threatened. They were concerned that discussions would lead to reductions in U.S. forces as well as support for Western Europe, potentially leaving them vulnerable to future Soviet attack if the Soviets reneged on their deals with the United States.

Cold War elsewhere

In 1973, Nixon appointed Kissinger as secretary of state. Kissinger maintained his position as national security advisor as well. Kissinger had firm control over foreign affairs while Nixon was becoming increasingly consumed with the growing domestic Watergate situation. This was a scandal that began on June 17, 1972, when five men were caught burglarizing the offices of the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. This led to a cover-up, political convictions, and, eventually, Nixon's resignation.

In October 1973, Kissinger convinced Nixon to provide support to Israel during its war with Egypt despite protests from Secretary of Defense James Schlesinger (1929–). Meanwhile, Kissinger and Brezhnev tried to negotiate a cease-fire between the two countries. The United States and the Soviet Union were involved because the United States had supported Israel since it declared formation of the Jewish state and the Soviets strongly courted Egypt's friendship. They both had desires to hold control of the Middle East and the oil-rich areas there. Despite U.S. and Soviet intervention, negotiations broke down as Israel gained the advantage on the battlefield. In reaction, Nixon threatened a nuclear attack. To ease the situation, the United Nations obtained a cease-fire resolution and placed a peacekeeping force in the region.

Kissinger soon began what was called "shuttle diplomacy," flying back and forth between Israel and Egypt to work out a peace settlement. As a result, the United States and Egypt reestablished formal relations, which had been broken off in 1967. These events formed the foundation for a historic treaty between Israel and Egypt in 1978, while Jimmy Carter (1924–; served 1977–81; see entry) was president. However, U.S. support of Israel during the conflict led to an oil embargo, or legal restriction of trade, by other Arab nations. They refused to ship oil for several months (December 1973–March 1974), causing high oil prices, inflation, and increased trade deficits, and making Kissinger very unpopular with many on the home front.

In Latin America, Kissinger secretly supported a military coup, or government overthrow, of Chile's elected leader, Salvador Allende (1908–1973; see entry). Allende embraced socialism, a system in which the government owns or controls all means of production and all citizens share in the work and products. Allende was nationalizing industries and introducing land reform to restructure the Chilean economy and ease the nation's poverty. Nationalism refers to the strong loyalty of a person or group to its own country. Previous U.S. owners of these nationalized companies were not compensated for their losses. The United States did not want Allende to be Chile's president because neither Nixon nor Kissinger believed that Chile should have a socialist government. They worried that Chile could be the first of many South American governments to fall to communism.

In 1973, Allende was overthrown and replaced with a military dictator named Augusto Pinochet (1915–). Pinochet would proceed to establish a brutal regime over Chile's citizens, leading to much criticism of Kissinger's efforts. The United States worked with harsh and dictatorial regimes such as Pinochet's because these regimes shared the U.S. government's anticommunist views. The United States preferred to support strong central governments, even brutal ones, rather than let communist influences take hold in struggling Latin American countries.

Kissinger's role in the secret bombing of Cambodia and the coup of Allende raised questions about the legality of his actions and the extent of his power. Nonetheless, Kissinger persevered and was spared formal challenges by Congress. Meanwhile, as Nixon became increasingly entangled in the Watergate scandal, his future as president was in doubt. Noting these developments, the Soviets became less interested in discussions with the faltering administration, and détente suffered by late 1973. Nixon resigned as president on August 9, 1974.

The Ford administration

New president Gerald R. Ford (1913–; served 1974–77) kept Kissinger as national security advisor and secretary of state. However, conservative critics attacked détente policies, charging that Kissinger was selling out to the Soviets. In addition, liberals complained about Kissinger's disregard for human rights issues—certain economic and political freedoms that all people, simply by being human, deserve—which he had neglected to consider when establishing pro-U.S. military dictatorships in Latin America. President Ford removed Kissinger as national security advisor in November 1975 in an effort to satisfy the critics.

The high point of détente came in 1975 with the Helsinki Accords, an agreement signed by thirty-five nations including the United States and the Soviet Union. The historic international agreement addressed many topics, including the recognition of post–World War II national boundaries and the promotion of human rights. For thirty years, the Soviets had sought official recognition of the postwar boundaries of Eastern European countries under their influence. With the Helsinki Accords, they finally achieved that goal (see box).

But the Helsinki Accords provided another target for conservative critics of Kissinger's détente policies. During his 1976 campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, former California governor Ronald Reagan (1911–; see entry) charged that Kissinger and the Ford administration had caved in to Soviet demands. In addition, Reagan attacked U.S. acceptance of the PRC. During the national election that fall, Democratic presidential candidate Jimmy Carter attacked the policies of Kissinger as well.

Life after public office

When Carter took office as president in January 1977, Kissinger left his post as secretary of state and went back to work as a consultant; he also continued writing books and presenting lectures. His later books include several memoirs: The White House Years (1979), For the Record (1981), and Diplomacy (1994). Kissinger's stature as an elder statesman and an expert on U.S. foreign policy enabled him to form his own foreign policy consulting firm in Washington, D.C., called Kissinger Associates, Inc. Many of his clients were international corporations.

In 1983, President Reagan appointed Kissinger to lead the Central American Policy Committee. In 1987, Kissinger traveled to Moscow to consult with Soviet leader Gorbachev. In 1988, Kissinger advised Vice President George Bush (1924–; see entry) on foreign matters during Bush's successful campaign to succeed Reagan as president. During Bush's presidency, Kissinger encouraged the president to work more closely with Gorbachev and support new Soviet reforms. In later years, Kissinger remained a respected though still controversial foreign affairs expert sought at times by both public officials and the news media for his perspectives on national security issues.

For More Information

Books

Bell, Coral. The Diplomacy of Detente: The Kissinger Era. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1977.

Isaacson, Walter. Kissinger: A Biography. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1992.

Kissinger, Henry. Diplomacy. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1996.

Kissinger, Henry. The White House Years. Boston: Little, Brown, 1979.

Szulc, Tad. The Illusion of Peace: Foreign Policy in the Nixon-Kissinger Years. New York: Viking, 1979.

Thornton, Richard C. The Nixon-Kissinger Years: Reshaping America's Foreign Policy. New York: Paragon Books, 1989.

Web Sites

Gerald R. Ford Library and Museum.http://www.ford.utexas.edu (accessed on September 8, 2003).

The Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace.http://www.nixonfoundation.org (accessed on September 8, 2003).

Helsinki Accords

While Henry Kissinger was serving as national security advisor for President Richard Nixon, one of his main foreign policy goals was to reduce political and military tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. This goal was achieved—even exceeded—at a meeting of thirty-five nations in Helsinki, Finland, in August 1975. Kissinger was no longer serving as national security advisor at that time, but his earlier efforts—and several years of discussions between the United States and the Soviet Union—had led up to the event, which was called the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). The participating countries included the Soviet Union and the rest of the Western and Eastern European nations, the United States, and Canada. On August 1, these nations signed what became known as the Helsinki Accords. By signing the accords, each nation agreed to:

• Continue pursuing the policies of détente
• Recognize the rights of independent nations to choose their political systems
• Denounce the use of threat of force and support of terrorism
• Respect the fundamental individual freedoms of thought and religious belief
• Work toward increased international trade
• Encourage a freer flow of ideas

The Helsinki Accords did not have the force of law or the same obligation as a more formal treaty. Instead, the agreement represented a mutual moral commitment to seek these common goals. Most important, from the Soviet perspective, the accords provided official recognition of European postwar boundaries by allowing communist Eastern European nations to sign the treaty as well. The Soviet-controlled Eastern European nations now had a much higher level of international recognition.

In the following years, the United States, particularly under President Jimmy Carter's administration, would stress the human rights elements of the accords. This would cause increased friction with Eastern European governments and the Soviet Union. The Soviets believed that the United States was interfering in the domestic affairs of the Soviet Union and Eastern European nations. A second CSCE summit was held in Paris in November 1990 to formally mark the end of the Cold War. At that session, participating nations, which included the Soviet Union, represented by Mikhail Gorbachev (1931–; see entry), signed a sweeping arms reduction treaty for Europe and made a formal commitment to support democracies based on human rights and fundamental freedoms.