Henry Kissinger Dies Aged 100

Facts

• Dr. Henry Kissinger, the renowned but divisive diplomat at the heart of US foreign policy for decades, died at the age of 100 at his Connecticut home on Wednesday, a statement from his consultancy firm confirmed.¹
• Born in Germany in 1923, Kissinger arrived in America with his family in 1938. Once in the US, he enlisted in the Army as part of the country's World War II effort in 1943, the same year he became a naturalized citizen. Due to his German language skills, he climbed the ranks of military intelligence.²
• Once back on US soil, he enrolled at Harvard, earning a master's degree in 1952 and a doctorate in 1954. He joined the university's faculty for the next 17 years, often advising US administrations on foreign policy. In 1968, when Richard Nixon won the presidency, Kissinger was brought on as White House National Security Adviser.²
• Alongside Nixon, Kissinger set out to reduce tensions with the Soviet Union, reviving talks that led to the scaling down of the nuclear arsenals of both superpowers. He also played a key role in thawing relations with China and bringing a cease-fire to the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.³
• After overseeing the withdrawal of US troops from South Vietnam, Kissinger earned the Nobel Peace Prize, which caused controversy. He was awarded the prize alongside North Vietnamese negotiator Le Duc Tho. Several prize committee members stepped down and Tho refused the award in protest over Kissinger's influence in the secret bombing of neutral Cambodia in 1969.⁴
• Kissinger survived Nixon's Watergate scandal and served as Secretary of State under Pres. Gerald Ford before leaving the government in 1976. He went on to found a successful geopolitical consulting firm in 1982, remaining central to global politics until his final days.⁴

Sources: ¹CNBC, ²Yahoo Finance, ³BBC News and ⁴The Guardian.

Narratives

• Narrative A, as provided by Breitbart. Kissinger can be criticized for many things after decades of establishing the US' post-WWII foreign policy, but no one can question that everything he did was done with the best interests of the US in mind. He will be greatly remembered for his many achievements, including the US troop withdrawal from Vietnam and the détente with Communist China and the Soviet Union. American public life will miss his wisdom and 'realpolitik.'
• Narrative B, as provided by Rolling Stone. Given the carpet bombing of Cambodia, the US’ role in problems in Pakistan, and the green-lighting of Indonesia's bloody invasion of East Timor, no other official in modern US history deserves the title of war criminal more than Kissinger. Mainstream voices will pay tribute to him as a statesman and a diplomat, but decency commands we remember the many civilians who suffered at his hands.

Predictions