The End of Kissinger's Era and the Endurance of Political Realism

Henry Kissinger, a notable figure in the implementation and theory of political realism within the United States, was renowned for his extraordinary intelligence, geopolitical forecasting, diplomatic evasions, and extensive knowledge. He was often described as a 'fox' and a 'wizard.' His policies and diplomatic maneuvers influenced various international events, including those in Vietnam, the Soviet Union, and the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Kissinger's prominence did not diminish when he ceased to be the chief diplomat after the Nixon and Ford administrations. On the contrary, he became an advisor, both officially and unofficially, to all subsequent American administrations, acting as one of their ambassadors and theorists in perpetuating American dominance and promoting its policies.

I had once invited him, along with Mr. David Rockefeller, to participate in one of the international symposiums on the Mediterranean region that I had organized more than a decade ago. Kissinger is a man who impresses you when he speaks, due to his vast knowledge and his boundless confidence, presented in an accessible style. This is because he has experienced the world of academia and mastered the art of lecturing and disseminating information to students. I believe that his academic and university background primarily enhanced his governmental and advisory positions.

He began his career as an academic, graduating from Harvard University. He joined its faculty, where he honed his intellectual and scientific personality. Starting in the early 1950s, he established the International Seminar at Harvard, bringing together dozens of prominent foreign personalities every summer to participate in training programs, meticulous lectures, and prolonged discussions. This enabled him to form a network of relationships that spanned continents.

He served as the Director of Harvard's Program for Defense Studies and as a security consultant for various American agencies. In December 1968, he was appointed Assistant to President Richard Nixon for National Security Affairs. He later held the position of Chairman of the National Security Council between 1969 and 1975 and served as Secretary of State between 1973 and 1977. He was the first naturalized citizen to serve as Secretary of State and the first person to hold both positions. In 1982, he founded "Kissinger Associates," a consulting firm whose expertise is sought after by numerous global institutions and countries.

His academic training and professorship, combined with his extraordinary intelligence—acknowledged by everyone who studied with him or was mentored by him—contributed to his roles in these positions, the renown of his consulting company, and his collection of works in the fields of strategy and international relations.

His political realism enabled him to institutionalize secret diplomacy and become a man of secret communication. His efforts resulted in the American opening to China and the normalization of relations between the two countries following his two secret trips in 1971, paving the way for Nixon's visit in 1972. He believed that further isolating the Soviet Union was possible through integrating China into the international economy, rather than isolating it from the global system.

His political realism and policy of détente helped in reducing tensions between America and the Soviet Union and led to the signing of several arms reduction agreements. However, this political realism often placed the interests of America and global powers above democracy, international law, and human rights. He faced accusations of being a "war criminal" and calls for his trial increased due to his involvement in the wars in Vietnam and Cambodia, and his conspiracy in several Latin American countries in the 1970s with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to overthrow Salvador Allende, the Marxist elected president of Chile, supporting military dictator Pinochet, backing the military coup in Argentina in 1976, and the invasion of East Timor in 1975. These issues and others are documented in the U.S. National Archives and recorded in Christopher Hitchens' book "The Trial of Henry Kissinger," published in 2011 (The Trial of Henry Kissinger, Ed. Saint-Simon).

Dr. Kissinger's approach involved shuttle diplomacy in the Middle East to stop the October 6, 1973 war between the Arabs and Israel. However, it was not driven by a love of peace, but rather by a desire to defend and save Israel through material, logistical, and international support, and by enabling it to adjust the balance of power in its favor. He successfully convinced President Nixon and Defense Secretary James Schlesinger to establish an air bridge to supply Israel with weapons and equipment, and he prevented a Security Council session from declaring a ceasefire. According to his doctrine, as he wrote in his memoirs, he could not accept Israel's defeat, even if it meant American intervention, even if it contravened the principles of international law. This doctrine explains what is happening today in the region and the astonishing policy of dual standards, which, even if not openly written in the alphabets of American political realism, is an integral part of it.

We recall that when the Bush Junior administration wanted to intervene in Iraq in 2003, most Western countries opposed it in the name of legal and international legitimacy and the philosophy that should guide countries in a military attack with unknown dimensions on a sovereign state. Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, and Colin Powell all made shuttle trips to European capitals (except Britain, which was supportive and allied with the White House) to convince their leaders, but to no avail.

This vast gap between the purely legal-philosophical doctrinal direction and the strategic direction, or in other words, between maintaining international legal legitimacy and eliminating Saddam Hussein's regime and his people, tore apart the rules of understanding around the determinants of the world system led and led by the United States to the extent that Dick Cheney described Western Europe as "old Europe" in contrast to Eastern European countries that supported military intervention.

Through his words, Cheney meant that the predominance of French and Western legal and philosophical superstitions outweighed the priorities of the stage in international relations that impose dual standards and non-legal strategic realism with a semi-legal and semi-satisfactory cover. The American-British military intervention occurred despite French-Western refusal and legal obstacles at the United Nations, and the rest is known.