100: Henry Kissinger

Henry Kissinger turns 100 today.

Born Heinz Alfred Kissinger on May 27, 1923 in Furth, Germany.

(In 1973)

In 1938, when he was 15 years old, he fled Nazi Germany because of the Anti-Jewish Pogroms there.

He became and American Citizen in 1943.

In 1943 he was Drafted into the US Army where he was assigned to Military Intelligence (because of his Fluency in German.)

He received the Bronze Star for helping to track down Gestapo Officers.

He then went to Harvard and studied Political Science.

From 1956 to 1958, He worked for the Rockefeller Brothers Fund as Director of its Special Studies Project.  He served as the Director of the Harvard Defense Studies Program between 1958 and 1971. In 1958, he also Co-Founded the Center for International Affairs with Robert R. Bowie where he served as its Associate Director.

Outside of Academia, he served as a Consultant to several Government Agencies and Think Tanks, including the Operations Research Office, the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, Department of State, and the RAND Corporation.

He left Academia and joined the Policial World where many of his actions or inactions have become Controversial.

He was the President’s National Security Advisor from 1969-to 1975 for both Nixon and Ford.

He was also Secretary of State from 1973-1977 (again for both Nixon and Ford.)

He was directly involved in the US War in Vietnam:

He leaked Information on Johnson’s Peace Negotiations with North Vietnam (which Kissinger was part of) to the Nixon Presidential Campaign in 1968.

He was involved in the Vietnamization of the Vietnam War – which meant to train and equip the South Vietnamese so they could fight the North Vietnamese themselves and the American Soldiers could leave.

He advised expanding the Vietnam War by the American Bombing of Cambodia from 1969-1973.

He circumvented the 1970 Cooper–Church Amendment (which ended American Troops fighting by land or air in Cambodia or Laos.)

In 1971 he failed in getting the publication of the Pentagon Papers stopped. The Pentagon Papers were Classified Government Documents that detailed America’s Involvement in South Vietnam, North Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos from 1947-1967 and were released by Daniel Ellsberg.

In February 1972 Kissinger helped Nixon to semi-recognize the People’s Republic of China (Communist China) for the first time since 1948. Official Recognition came in 1979. Nixon visited Mao in Beijing in 1972.

Kissinger wanted China’s help to end America’s Fight in Vietnam since China helped North Vietnam.

He called for the Christmas Bombing of North Vietnam in 1972 to force the North Vietnamese to the Negotiation Table.

He negotiated the end of America’s Direct Military Involvement in the Vietnam War with the Paris Peace Agreement in January 1973. The last US Soldier left South Vietnam in April 1973.

He won the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize along with North Vietnamese Le Duc Tho.

After Nixon resigned in August 1974 he stayed on as Ford’s Advisor.

On April 12, 1975 he instructed the US Ambassador to Cambodia, Ambassador John Gunther Dean to evacuate all Americans and Cambodians that helped America before the Khmer Rouge took Phnom Penh.

Known as Operation Eagle Pull it evacuated 84 US Citizens and 205 Cambodian and Third Country Nationals from Phnom Penh to American Warships.

As Secretary of State Kissinger ordered the US Embassy in Cambodia closed on April 12, 1975.

The Communist Khmer Rouge took over Phnom Penh and all of Cambodia on April 17, 1975 and started the Cambodian Genocide (where they murdered 2 Million Civilians until 1979.)

On April 15, 1975, with the North Vietnamese on the outskirts of Saigon, he testified to the Senate Appropriations Committee, urging Congress to increase Military Aid to South Vietnam – which was denied.

On April 20, 1975 he instructed US Ambassador to South Vietnam, Graham Martin, to start preparing to evacuate all American Citizens and the South Vietnamese that helped America before the North Vietnamese took Saigon.

Known as Operation Frequent Wind it evacuated 50,493 people (including 2,678 South Vietnamese Orphans) by Plane and 1,373 Americans and 5,595 Vietnamese and Third Country Nationals by Helicopter from Saigon to American Warships from April 29-30, 1975.

As Secretary of State Kissinger ordered the closure of the US Embassy in Saigon, South Vietnam on April 30, 1975 (400 Civilians including 49 Americans and 100 South Koreans were abandoned at the US Embassy and captured by the North Vietnamese who didn’t let them leave Vietnam until August 1976.)

The North Vietnamese Communists captured Saigon and all of South Vietnam on April 30, 1975. The Country was reunited into a Communist Country on July 3, 1976. The Vietnamese Communists sent 1 Million Former South Vietnamese to Re-Education Camps from 1975-1989 where they were starved, tortured and murdered.

 

Non-Vietnam War Related:

In 1971 he supported Pakistan against the Bangladeshis during the Bangladesh War For Independence even when it became publicly known that the Pakistanis were carrying out an Official Genocide against the Bangladeshis. From March – December 1971 Pakistan murdered 3 Million Bangladeshi Men, Women and Children.

Kissinger helped Nixon send Sanctioned Military Supplies to Pakistan through Jordan and Iran.

The US was on the losing side as Pakistan eventually recognized their loss and Bangladesh’s Independence in 1971.

Kissinger used the policy of Détente (relaxation) with the Soviet Union from 1969 until the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.

Kissinger refused to officially stand-up to the Soviets in support of their Official Discrimination against Soviet Jews (Refuseniks) in the 1960s-1970s.

Agreements and Meetings between the US and the USSR at this time included the:

1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty

The Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) 1 in 1972.

The Biological Weapons Convention of 1972.

The Washington Summit of 1973 (where The Agreement on the Prevention of Nuclear War was signed.)

The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) – where the Helsinki Accords were signed in 1975.)

(In 2023)

Non-Détente Related:

In 1971 Kissinger renewed the American Base Lease on the Azores in exchange for recognizing the Dictatorship of the Estado Novo – that ruled Portugal until 1974.

In 1971 Kissinger supported Zaire’s Dictator Mobutu Sese Seko who ruled until 1997.

In May 1972 Iran (under the Shah) ended diplomatic relations with Iraq. Kissinger offered Iran America’s Military Supplies and Financial Support – helping to make the Shah more of a Dictator inside Iran.

During the 1973 Yom Kippur War between Israel and Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Jordan, Iraq, Libya, Kuwait, Tunisia, Cuba, Morocco and Sudan Kissinger created Operation Nickel Grass that shipped 22,325 tons of American tanks, artillery, ammunition and supplies to Israel in 32 days.

This Aid led to OPEC’s 1973 Oil Crisis in the US where gas across the country was rationed.

Kissinger helped end JFK’s Alliance for Progress in Latin America (started in 1961) in 1973.

Kissinger supported 1973 Chilean Coup d'état which got rid of the Democratically Elected Government of President Salvador Allende and installed the Dictator Augusto Pinochet which lasted until 1990 and saw 30,000 Victims including 2,279 “Disappeared.”

During Turkey’s Invasion of Cyprus in 1974 Kissinger refused to intervene (even after the US Ambassador to Cyprus, Rodger Davies, was murdered in Nicosia, Cyprus on August 19, 1974.

 

After Nixon’s Resignation:

In December 1974 Kissinger sided with Indonesia when it invaded and occupied the Former Portuguese Territory of East Timor. East Timor was occupied until 1999 with 300,000 East Timorese dead.

In 1975, Kissinger encouraged Morocco in taking over the Former Spanish Territory of Western Sahara (which it still does.)

In 1976 Kissinger supported the Dirty War in Argentina’s Military Junta. 30,000 People were murdered or “Disappeared” until it ended in 1983.

In 1976 Kissinger got involved in the Rhodesian Bush War and tried to hasten the Country’s Transition to Black-Majority Rule (which happened in 1980.)

In 1977, Kissinger helped create the Torrijos–Carter Treaties with Panama (which returned the Panama Canal Zone to Panama in 1999.)

He left Political Office in 1977 and has worked to convince Americans and the World of his achievements ever since (many consider what he did and didn’t do very controversial.)

 

Personal:

Kissinger married Anneliese "Ann" Fleischer (Born in 1925 in Furth, Germany)  on February 6, 1949. They had two Children, Elizabeth and David, and divorced in 1964.

 On March 30, 1974, he married Nancy Maginnes. They now live in Kent, Connecticut, and in New York City.