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Henry Kissinger
Best Known As:
Political Figure
Gist:
Henry Alfred Wolfgang Kissinger (born Heinz Alfred Wolfgang Kissinger on May 27, 1923), [ is a German-born American political scientist, diplomat, and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the Nixon Administration.]
A proponent of Realpolitik, Kissinger played a dominant role in United States foreign policy between 1969 and 1977. During this period, he pioneered the policy of détente. He negotiated a settlement ending the Vietnam War, but the cease-fire proved unstable and no lasting peace resulted beyond the pullout of the US troops.
In the Nixon and Ford administrations he was a flamboyant figure. He described himself as perhaps the only National Security Advisor to have a fan club. His foreign policy record made him a villain to the anti-war left (see the Operation Condor section below). Kissinger was the "most frequent visitor" to the George W. Bush White House as an unofficial political adviser on Israel and the Middle East?including the invasion and occupation of Iraq.
A press release issued by the 45th Munich Conference on Security Policy on February 8, 2009 declared "His voice continues to bear weight and authority throughout the globe." Also at the conference National Security Adviser James L. Jones stated "I take my daily orders from Dr. Kissinger, filtered down through General Brent Scowcroft and Sandy Berger, who is also here." Kissinger also currently serves as the chairman of Kissinger Associates, an international consulting firm.
Life Facts:
Kissinger served as National Security Advisor and Secretary of State under President Richard Nixon, and continued as Secretary of State under Nixon's successor Gerald Ford.
A proponent of Realpolitik, Kissinger played a dominant role in United States foreign policy between 1969 and 1977. In that period, he extended the policy of détente. This policy led to a significant relaxation in U.S.-Soviet tensions and played a crucial role in 1971 talks with Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. The talks concluded with a rapprochement between the United States and the People's Republic of China, and the formation of a new strategic anti-Soviet Sino-American alliance. He was awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for helping to establish a ceasefire and US withdrawal from Vietnam. The ceasefire, however, was not durable.
Kissinger favored the maintenance of friendly diplomatic relationships with right-wing military dictatorships in the Southern Cone and elsewhere in Latin America.
Tom Lehrer interviewed by Stephen Thompson |accessdate=2007-08-24 |url=
Monty Python satirized Kissinger in the Henry Kissinger Song.
Kissinger has been mentioned on the show Fawlty Towers.
Kissinger appears in the Simpsons episode $pringfield (Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Legalized Gambling).
In a 1999 radio interview with BBC news presenter Jeremy Paxman, ostensibly to promote the latest volume of his memoirs, Dr. Kissinger reportedly walked out after being asked some tough questions about the U.S. role in the bombing of Cambodia. However, BBC sources claim he was late for another appointment and merely had to leave early.
Kissinger has also been parodied in the show Futurama several times.
A parody of Kissinger appears in several episodes of "The Venture Bros." as Dr. Henry Killinger, who is never seen without his "magic murder bag."
A fictional portrayal of Kissinger, along with Nixon, appears in the 1980s comic book and subsequent 2009 film Watchmen.
Kissinger left office when a Democrat, former Governor of Georgia and "Washington outsider" Jimmy Carter, defeated Republican, Gerald Ford in the 1976 presidential elections. During the campaign, Carter criticized Kissinger, arguing he was "single-handedly" managing all of the US' foreign relations. Through the 1980s and early 1990s, Kissinger's role in US government and policy was minimized, as the neoconservatives who rose to prominence in the Republican Party under the Reagan administration began to consider Nixonian détente to be a policy of unwise accommodation with the Soviet Union. Kissinger continued to participate in policy groups, such as the Trilateral Commission, and to maintain political consulting, speaking, and writing engagements.
In 2002, President George W. Bush appointed Kissinger to chair a committee to investigate the terrorist attacks of September 11 attacks. Kissinger stepped down as chairman on December 13, 2002 rather than reveal his client list, when queried about potential conflicts of interest.
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