[Preview of the Weekly] The Centenarian Kissinger: His Influence and Controversy in International Diplomacy Continue to Resonate (AI Translation)
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- Henry Kissinger, a veteran U.S. diplomat and former Secretary of State, passed away at the age of 100. He was known for his significant influence on U.S. foreign policy during the Cold War, particularly in opening relations with China, detente with the Soviet Union, and his controversial role in Vietnam and other geopolitical hotspots.
- Kissinger's diplomatic legacy includes pioneering U.S.-China rapprochement and shaping strategic arms control agreements with the USSR. However, his tenure also involved contentious actions like supporting authoritarian regimes and military interventions that have drawn criticism over the years.
- Despite leaving active political roles by his mid-50s, Kissinger remained an influential figure through writing, consulting, and advising subsequent leaders. His views on international relations continued to be sought after by U.S. presidents across party lines as well as global leaders up until his death.
文｜财新周刊 曾佳 发自美国首都华盛顿
By Caixin Weekly's Zeng Jia, from the U.S. capital, Washington
“和历史学家、分析师和学者不同，政治人物只有一次机会；如果他犯了错，是收不回来的”──2023年12月1日，美国国务卿布林肯在发表对以百岁遐龄过世的同岗前辈、美国资深外交家亨利·基辛格的悼词时，如此引用了这段基辛格的原话。布林肯还感叹道，“在今天的美国担任外交官，就是在穿越一个他留下了长久足迹的世界”。
"Unlike historians, analysts, and scholars, politicians only get one chance; if they make a mistake, there's no taking it back,"—On December 1, 2023, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken quoted these words from Henry Kissinger while delivering a eulogy for the centenarian predecessor and veteran American diplomat who had recently passed away. Blinken also lamented, "Being a diplomat in today's America means navigating a world where he has left enduring footprints."
从尼克松1968年当选美国总统，到尼克松被弹劾后的继任者福特于1977年下台，曾兼领美国国务卿和美国总统国安顾问两职的基辛格，其权势最为叱咤、个人意志和影响力竟能投射到冷战板块对撞的每一处前沿的岁月，距今其实已近半个世纪。
From the election of Richard Nixon as President of the United States in 1968 to the departure of his successor, Gerald Ford, following Nixon's impeachment in 1977, Henry Kissinger, who served concurrently as Secretary of State and National Security Advisor, wielded his greatest power and influence. His personal will was projected onto every frontline where Cold War tensions clashed. In fact, nearly half a century has passed since those days.
然而，不论是转开中美接触的阀门，在酿成重大代价后逐渐于越战中止损和逐步抽身，与苏联寻求缔结限武条约的缓和，抑或是在拉美、南亚、印度尼西亚等美苏较劲的各个前沿地带为美国地缘利益的一时消长而激烈博弈……基辛格和其影响下的美国政府行为，写就了冷战中程阶段两强对峙外溢到全球的高潮篇章，也直接或间接地冲击了世界上许多地区人民的命运，使围绕基辛格政策遗产的谤誉终其身而未止。
However, whether it was opening the valve of Sino-American engagement, gradually seeking to cut losses and withdraw from the Vietnam War after incurring significant costs, pursuing détente with the Soviet Union by seeking arms limitation treaties, or fiercely competing for American geopolitical interests in various front-line areas where the US and USSR were vying for influence—such as Latin America, South Asia, and Indonesia—Henry Kissinger's actions and their influence on U.S. government policy wrote a climactic chapter of global spillover during the mid-stage of the Cold War standoff. These actions also directly or indirectly impacted the fate of people in many regions around the world, ensuring that debate over Kissinger's policy legacy continued unabated throughout his lifetime.
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