Jakarta –
Former United States Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, has died at the age of 100. Over his decades-long career, Kissinger played an important, often controversial, role in US foreign policy during the Cold War, including involving Indonesia.
He served as the top US diplomat and national security adviser during the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.
Although he left office in the mid-1970s, he continued to consult for various leaders over the decades.
The German-born former diplomat died at his home in Connecticut.
A statement late Wednesday from the Kissinger Associates consulting firm he founded did not state a cause of death.
Former US President George W Bush led the tributes by saying the US had “lost one of its most reliable and distinctive voices in foreign affairs”.
President Richard Nixon’s daughters, Tricia Nixon Cox and Julie Nixon Eisenhower, said that Kissinger’s life story was “very unique – and completely American”.
“Henry Kissinger will always be remembered for his many achievements in advancing peace,” the statement said.
“But it is his character that we will never forget,” he added.
Childhood and early career
Born in Germany in 1923, Kissinger first came to the US in 1938 when his family fled the Nazis. He never lost his Bavarian accent.
He became a US citizen in 1943 and served for three years in the US Army and then in the Counterintelligence Corps.
After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees as well as a PhD, he taught international relations at Harvard University.
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He entered the political arena in 1960, serving as senior foreign policy advisor to Governor Nelson Rockefeller’s presidential campaigns in 1960, 1964 and 1968.
When Rockefeller lost the Republican nomination in 1968, Kissinger joined Richard Nixon’s campaign.
In 1969, after Nixon’s victory, Kissinger was appointed Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs and then National Security Advisor, positions that gave him great influence over US foreign policy.
As secretary of state during the Nixon administration and later under President Gerald Ford Kissinger led the restoration of diplomatic relations with China, helped negotiate an end to the 1973 Yom Kippur War between Israel and its neighbors, and was instrumental in the Paris Peace Accords that ended the Vietnam War .
Getty ImagesGerald Ford retained Kissinger as Secretary of State after Watergate.
Engagement with Indonesia
Henry Kissinger is said to have started highlighting Indonesia when he worked with brothers, Allen Dulles and John Foster Dulles in 1952.
Later Allen became Director of Central Intelligence (DCI), while John Foster became US Secretary of State.
In the 1920s and 1930s, Allen and John Foster became leading attorneys for the Rockefeller oil empire.
They were interested in the Dutch East Indies because it had mining and oil potential.
In 1950, Dulles’ strategy in Indonesia focused on ensuring that West Papua changed hands, from Dutch to Indonesian control, and then towards regime change.
Not only that, Kissinger and the Dulles brothers tried to “drive a wedge between Moscow and Beijing” by eliminating supporters of Sukarno and the Indonesian Communist Party.
Getty ImagesDuring President Richard Nixon’s administration, Kissinger served as Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, National Security Advisor, and US Secretary of State.
This strategy was first formulated in the Rockefeller Brothers panel report in 1958, as stated by historian Greg Poulgrain in the book JFK vs Allen Dulles: Battleground Indonesia.
“Allen Dulles, Henry Kissinger, all knew the impact of the eradication of the PKI on the Cold War because there was a conflict of blame between Moscow and Beijing. Previously both of them were fighting for control or influence over the PKI, which was the third largest communist power in the world,” explained Poulgrain to BBC News Indonesia.
“They are [Allen Dulles dan Henry Kissinger] no longer interested in the attempt to assassinate Sukarno, they were interested in eliminating the main supporters of Sukarno and the PKI. By eliminating it, Moscow and Beijing are at odds.
“So, the turning point of the Cold War was not President Nixon’s visit or the Kissinger negotiations, but Indonesia on September 30, 1965,” said Poulgrain.
Criticism and controversy
As stated in secret documents published by the National Security Archive at George Washington University, under Kissinger’s direction, the US gave the green light to Indonesia’s attack on East Timor (now Timor-Leste) in 1975 which began a 24-year occupation by President Soeharto.
Indonesia’s occupation of Timor Leste was made possible by US weapons and training.
Kissinger also encouraged prolonging the Vietnam War and expanding the conflict into Cambodia; facilitated genocide in Cambodia, Timor Leste, and Bangladesh; the acceleration of civil war in southern Africa; as well as supporting coups and death squads throughout Latin America.
There was the blood of at least three million people on his hands, according to Kissinger biographer Greg Grandin.
“There are few people as involved in the death and destruction and human suffering in as many places around the world as Henry Kissinger,” said war crimes prosecutor Reed Brody.
Getty ImagesUS President, Gerald Ford, and US Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, on the grounds of the White House, Washington DC, in 1974.
Over the years, Kissinger also faced harsh criticism from people who accused him of encouraging human rights abuses and supporting repressive regimes around the world, including Augusto Pinochet’s regime in Chile.
But Kissinger dismissed this criticism.
“It reflects their ignorance,” the raspy-voiced statesman said CBS in an interview, shortly before his 100th birthday.
In 1973, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize alongside Le Duc Tho of North Vietnam, who refused to accept it.
The controversial award caused two members of the Nobel committee to resign.
AFPPresident of Indonesia, Abdurrahman Wahid, meets Henry Kissinger at the Presidential Palace, Jakarta, 28 February 2000.
When Kissinger left government in 1977, he continued to be a prolific commentator on international relations.
His advice was sought by 12 US presidents from John F Kennedy to Joe Biden as well as by members of parliament.
Kissinger is also the only American to have had direct contact with every Chinese leader from Mao Zedong to Xi Jinping.
He also serves on the board of directors of various companies and is a member of foreign and security policy forums, and has written 21 books.
Active seniors
Even after turning 100, Kissinger continues to live an active life, including a surprise visit to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping this July.
There, Kissinger received a warm welcome even though relations between China and the US were cold.
The visit upset the White House. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby complained that it was “unfortunate that a private citizen” had access to high-level Chinese officials while the US government did not.
Getty ImagesKissinger met Donald Trump when he was still US president
During an interview with ABC on a book tour in July 2022 when he was 99 years old Kissinger was asked if he would go back on any decision in his life.
“I’ve thought about this problem all my life. This is both my hobby and my job,” he said.
“So the recommendations I made were the best I could.”
He is survived by his wife of nearly 50 years, as well as two children – Elizabeth and David – from a previous marriage and five grandchildren.
Also see ‘The Moment the President of Timor Leste Kissed Iriana Jokowi’s Hand at the ASEAN Summit Location’:
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2023-12-01 03:32:30
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