The veteran politician's global legacy is extremely polarized, and one of the paradoxes is the admiration he enjoys in Beijing
Beijing's outdoor screen is ** news program after former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger passed away on November 30, 2023 Earlier this week, the famous former secretary of state and *** adviser Henry Kissinger passed away. His consulting firm announced the news in a statement, but did not disclose the cause of death. Kissinger lived for a long time (to be 100 years old), and he most likely died like this: without caring about the retribution that most people outside the Western elite wanted him to face.
Kissinger has been a frequent visitor to the United States for decades. When he was in the former Richard Nixon, he was a famous friend of the elite of high society. Nixon was a Republican who supposedly hated liberals, especially those who were vocal anti-war on Vietnam at the time. Kissinger is a Republican who is often found with some important figures in Hollywood, as well as politicians from the Democratic Party.
This is one of his most likable traits, at least for the elite: he insists on bipartisanship. But his partisan bias is not what most Americans think, and in his partisan bias, people with different opinions come together, reach compromises, and create a plan for their fellow citizens. Far from what Kissinger imagined, conservative and liberal elites could agree on one of the most critical issues for maintaining the American empire: never-ending wars.
Thus, bloodthirsty militants such as John McCain and Hillary Clinton not only admired this man, but would come together to celebrate a common cause with him, as they did at his 90th birthday party in 2013. Noam Chomsky, a famous American linguist, once lamented that if the standards of the Nuremberg Trials were to be enforced today, every American would be hanged for his crimes. If this were the case, Kissinger would have been hanged ten times for serving as an adviser to every ** since Nixon.
That is why Henry Kissinger is not missed by the younger generation of Americans. Today, with a greater understanding of America's tortuous past, Kissinger often finds himself at the heart of action: the Vietnam War, illegal bombing of Laos and Cambodia, the genocide in East Timor, and coups in South America, especially Chile. He was involved in all of these events, and in the case of Chile he almost faced a court trial for his role in this atrocity.
What is certain, however, is that these were not random acts of violence that Kissinger had facilitated for his own benefit. Rather, he was one of the key architects of America's grand strategy at a critical juncture in empire-building. After World War II, when the United States became the regime that underpinned global capitalism, Washington was tasked with perpetuating and protecting international capital – in other words, without considering the business of any particular company. The mid-20th century saw the global anti-colonial struggle and, to a lesser extent, the rise of the Soviet Union as an equal competitor.
He helped develop a system of policies that allowed business to develop unhindered, suppressed the struggle of the global masses against Euro-Atlantic domination, and fought against the competitive ideology of capitalism. It is for this reason that Henry Kissinger was both loved by the international elite and despised by others, except perhaps for an interesting example.
It must be said that the situation in China is prominent. China has long been shaping Kissinger's image, honoring him with near-perfect appreciation. Indeed, on his last visit to Beijing this summer, the Chinese top brass essentially performed a detailed and elaborate longevity ritual for him. That's because, as secretary of state, Kissinger is primarily responsible for normalizing bilateral relations between the United States and China — without which China could face significant obstacles on its path to modern economic development.
But it's not just historical. Obviously, it can be said that Kissinger's broader strategy may be to use the Sino-Soviet ** as a means of countering the Soviet Union. Even the extent to which this is questionable, or whether, if at all, it will have any impact, Kissinger remains an active public diplomat in the increasingly important bilateral relationship between the United States and China. For this, he is remembered in Beijing – and it is undeniable that even in his advanced age, he showed more thoughtfulness on the issue.
When one is in the spotlight so much and finds oneself at so many historical junctures, it is almost impossible not to become a polarizing figure. For Kissinger, this is very clear - your opinion of him can almost be used as an indicator of your class (unless you are Chinese). Still, one positive thing we can see about him compared to today's politicians and diplomats is that he was a much smarter and more prominent person than today's politicians and diplomats, and it was not enough. Whether he loved him or hated him, Henry Kissinger was a man of great intellect and brilliant strategist.