Born in the boom of telegraphs and trunk calls in Germany's Bavaria region in May 1923, the immensely controversial and equally consequential US foreign policy practitioner Henry Kissinger <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/henry-kissinger-the-most-controversial-and-influential-american-of-20th-century-dies-at-100-664470">died in the hyperconnected times of internet</a> on November 30, 2023. The scholar-turned-diplomat was serving as the US National Security Advisor to President Richard Nixon in the December of 1971 when New Delhi&nbsp;intervened in the erstwhile East Pakistan after millions of refugees poured into India in the wake of atrocities committed by Punjabi-dominated West Pakistan military against their own Bengali brethren.&nbsp;

With an indecipherable ink of a Harvard scholar acting as the signature of his diplomacy, Kissinger also shaped the geopolitics of Indian subcontinent during that strife, which later came to be known as Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/web-stories/south-asia/bangladesh/meet-lieutenant-general-js-aurora-sam-bahadur-manekshaw-jfr-jacob-the-liberator-of-bangladesh-1700980577673">Meet Lieutenant General J.S. Aurora: The 'Liberator of Bangladesh'</a>

India's military intervention in Bangladesh began on December 3 that year. Ducca (now Dhaka) fell in 12 days. The then West Pakistan Army signed an Instrument of Surrender on December 16, 1971, leaving about 93,000 Pakistani soldiers effectively under New Delhi's control in the newly-created Bangladesh.&nbsp;

But one of the most curious things about this war was the 'Chinese intervention' that never happened.

According to the US state department Archives, the then US President Richard Nixon instructed Kissinger "to ask the Chinese to move some forces toward the frontier with India" in December 1971.&nbsp;

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Kissinger should have apologized to people of Bangladesh , Bangladesh Foreign Minister Momen recounts his support to West Pakistan that led to genocide in the then East Pakistan. Details: <a href="https://t.co/02DvWHl8C1">https://t.co/02DvWHl8C1</a>
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"Threaten to move forces or move them, Henry, that's what they (Chinese) must do now," Nixon told Kissinger inside Oval Office on December 10, 1971.

The US did not share formal ties with Communist Party-led mainland China between 1949 to 1972, with absolute resumption of diplomatic relations only coming in 1979 — one of the most significant geopolitical events of the second half of 20th century which effectively tilted the balance of Cold War in Washington's favour.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/opinions-blogs/dubious-strategist-ruthless-diplomat-south-asian-loser-kissingers-bull-run-was-stopped-by-indian-defiance-664604">Dubious strategist, ruthless diplomat, South Asian loser: Kissinger's bull run was stopped by Indian defiance</a>

Kissinger's efforts to establish diplomatic ties between Washington and Beijing were being aided by Pakistan as a channel of communication at least since December 1970.

In April 1971, a month after Sheikh Mujibur Rehman proclaimed the birth of Bangladesh in the territory of erstwhile East Pakistan, and Pakistan reacted by launching 'Operation Searchlight', the Pakistani ambassador delivered Chinese leader Zhou Enlai's reply to Washington. This correspondence paved the way for Kissinger's secret trip to Beijing in July 1971 and beginning of events that fully restored US-China&nbsp;ties in 1979. The rest as they say, to use a cliche, is history.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/web-stories/features/sam-manekshaw-and-indira-gandhi-and-that-one-cabinet-meeting-1701332854821">Sam Manekshaw and Indira Gandhi, and That One Cabinet Meeting</a> 
 
In an odd turn of events, while the US cosied up with Communist China, the Soviet Union, another Communist nation that two decades later become Russia, cemented its ties with India after signing&nbsp;a comprehensive treaty of ‘Peace, Friendship and Cooperation’ on August 9, 1971.

In order to aid Islamabad that was facilitating the dialogue between Washington and Beijing — and thereby giving Washington an edge against Moscow in Cold War&nbsp;—&nbsp;the US deployed Task Force 74 of the US Navy’s Seventh Fleet in the Bay of Bengal to prevent India from overrunning Pakistan.

In response, the Soviets deployed two groups of cruisers and destroyers as well as a submarine armed with nuclear warheads in the region.&nbsp;

The geopolitical calculations in the Oval Office where Nixon and Kissinger met on December 10, 1971,&nbsp;did not want the dismembering of Pakistan despite its mass atrocities on Bangla-speaking people of erstwhile East Pakistan.

<h2>Henry Kissinger was meeting Chinese at CIA 'safe houses': Benazir Bhutto</h2>

According to former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, her father, erstwhile prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto,&nbsp;was worried that the Chinese would not&nbsp; intervene militarily on the side of Pakistan. But both Islamabad and Washington were working in tandem&nbsp;to ensure a Chinese military intervention.

"While Papa is planning to ask Yahya to fly to Peking (now Beijing) as a last resort, Henry Kissinger, I read later, is having meetings with the Chinese in CIA 'safe houses' all over New York," the late former prime minister wrote in her autobiography Daughter of the East.

Contrary to the expectations from some corners in US and Pakistan, China did not move its forces towards its unresolved frontier with India during crucial days of Indian operations in present-day Bangladesh.

Peking did not intend to militarily confront Moscow, a fellow Communist nation, even for an all-weather partner like Pakistan and despite the prospect of resumption of ties with Washington at the height Cold War.&nbsp;

Nixon concluded to Kissinger at the end of that discussion on December 10, 1971 that "Russia and China aren't going to go to war."

"India, however, had emerged from the crisis confirmed as the preeminent power on the subcontinent, and Soviet support for India during the crisis had enhanced Soviet influence in India," the US state department concluded in a document on the war. 
 
And Kissinger's secret diplomacy eventually led to American diplomatic recognition of and closer ties with China, only for him to see it all unravel in his own lifetime, in the past decade.

Born in the boom of telegraphs and trunk calls in Germany's Bavaria region in May 1923, the immensely controversial and equally consequential US foreign policy practitioner Henry Kissinger died in the hyperconnected times of internet on November 30, 2023.

Born in the boom of telegraphs and trunk calls in Germany's Bavaria region in May 1923, the immensely controversial and equally consequential US foreign policy practitioner Henry Kissinger died in the hyperconnected times of internet on November 30, 2023. The scholar-turned-diplomat was serving as the US National Security Advisor to President Richard Nixon in the December of 1971 when New Delhi intervened in the erstwhile East Pakistan after millions of refugees poured into India in the wake of atrocities committed by Punjabi-dominated West Pakistan military against their own Bengali brethren. With an indecipherable ink of a Harvard scholar acting as the signature of his diplomacy, Kissinger also shaped the geopolitics of Indian subcontinent during that strife, which later came to be known as Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971. Also Read | Meet Lieutenant General J.S. Aurora: The 'Liberator of Bangladesh' India's military intervention in Bangladesh began on December 3 that year. Ducca (now Dhaka) fell in 12 days. The then West Pakistan Army signed an Instrument of Surrender on December 16, 1971, leaving about 93,000 Pakistani soldiers effectively under New Delhi's control in the newly-created Bangladesh. But one of the most curious things about this war was the 'Chinese intervention' that never happened. According to the US state department Archives, the then US President Richard Nixon instructed Kissinger "to ask the Chinese to move some forces toward the frontier with India" in December 1971. Kissinger should have apologized to people of Bangladesh , Bangladesh Foreign Minister Momen recounts his support to West Pakistan that led to genocide in the then East Pakistan. Details: https://t.co/02DvWHl8C1 — Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) November 30, 2023 × "Threaten to move forces or move them, Henry, that's what they (Chinese) must do now," Nixon told Kissinger inside Oval Office on December 10, 1971. The US did not share formal ties with Communist Party-led mainland China between 1949 to 1972, with absolute resumption of diplomatic relations only coming in 1979 — one of the most significant geopolitical events of the second half of 20th century which effectively tilted the balance of Cold War in Washington's favour. Also Read | Dubious strategist, ruthless diplomat, South Asian loser: Kissinger's bull run was stopped by Indian defiance Kissinger's efforts to establish diplomatic ties between Washington and Beijing were being aided by Pakistan as a channel of communication at least since December 1970. In April 1971, a month after Sheikh Mujibur Rehman proclaimed the birth of Bangladesh in the territory of erstwhile East Pakistan, and Pakistan reacted by launching 'Operation Searchlight', the Pakistani ambassador delivered Chinese leader Zhou Enlai's reply to Washington. This correspondence paved the way for Kissinger's secret trip to Beijing in July 1971 and beginning of events that fully restored US-China ties in 1979. The rest as they say, to use a cliche, is history. Also read | Sam Manekshaw and Indira Gandhi, and That One Cabinet Meeting In an odd turn of events, while the US cosied up with Communist China, the Soviet Union, another Communist nation that two decades later become Russia, cemented its ties with India after signing a comprehensive treaty of ‘Peace, Friendship and Cooperation’ on August 9, 1971. In order to aid Islamabad that was facilitating the dialogue between Washington and Beijing — and thereby giving Washington an edge against Moscow in Cold War — the US deployed Task Force 74 of the US Navy’s Seventh Fleet in the Bay of Bengal to prevent India from overrunning Pakistan. In response, the Soviets deployed two groups of cruisers and destroyers as well as a submarine armed with nuclear warheads in the region. The geopolitical calculations in the Oval Office where Nixon and Kissinger met on December 10, 1971, did not want the dismembering of Pakistan despite its mass atrocities on Bangla-speaking people of erstwhile East Pakistan. Henry Kissinger was meeting Chinese at CIA 'safe houses': Benazir Bhutto According to former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, her father, erstwhile prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was worried that the Chinese would not intervene militarily on the side of Pakistan. But both Islamabad and Washington were working in tandem to ensure a Chinese military intervention. "While Papa is planning to ask Yahya to fly to Peking (now Beijing) as a last resort, Henry Kissinger, I read later, is having meetings with the Chinese in CIA 'safe houses' all over New York," the late former prime minister wrote in her autobiography Daughter of the East. Contrary to the expectations from some corners in US and Pakistan, China did not move its forces towards its unresolved frontier with India during crucial days of Indian operations in present-day Bangladesh. Peking did not intend to militarily confront Moscow, a fellow Communist nation, even for an all-weather partner like Pakistan and despite the prospect of resumption of ties with Washington at the height Cold War. Nixon concluded to Kissinger at the end of that discussion on December 10, 1971 that "Russia and China aren't going to go to war." "India, however, had emerged from the crisis confirmed as the preeminent power on the subcontinent, and Soviet support for India during the crisis had enhanced Soviet influence in India," the US state department concluded in a document on the war. And Kissinger's secret diplomacy eventually led to American diplomatic recognition of and closer ties with China, only for him to see it all unravel in his own lifetime, in the past decade.

Cast From The Past: When Kissinger failed to make China attack India during 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War

Henry Kissinger, the former US National Security Adviser and Secretary of State was a celebrated personality, who also faced a fair amount of criticism. But whichever&nbsp;way you look at him and his legacy, one thing is certain, he was one of the top statesmen who shaped not only US foreign policy but also&nbsp;global politics. For some, he was a 'world statesman', while others openly called him a 'war criminal' for the fallout of actions he took through his diplomacy.

For Kissinger, by his own admission, power was the ultimate aphrodisiac. He dated some actresses like Jill St. John, the first American bond girl, Marsha Metrinko and others if&nbsp;media reports&nbsp;are to be believed. It is also said that his&nbsp;image of a playboy was only&nbsp;media-generated.

Gravitas: How Henry Kissinger Went From India-hater to Urging for Stronger Ties

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One thing is for sure, Kissinger had firm control over&nbsp;US foreign policy as secretary of state during the years of President Richard Nixon. The two were&nbsp;close, although there were differences between them regarding matters related to&nbsp;some world conflicts.

<h2>The Nixon doctrine</h2>

The so-called 'Nixon doctrine' of US policy can safely be called Nixon-Kissinger doctrine, such was Kissinger's influence. This approach was announced by President Nixon in 1969. This doctrine said that the US should help its allies with economic and military aid when a conflict occurs and should avoid sending US troops. Nixon even said that the United States could no longer afford to defend its allies fully. The US would of course uphold treaty obligations but would also expect allies to contribute for&nbsp;their own defence.

However,&nbsp;Nixon assured the allies that US nuclear assets would continue to protect them in case of a nuclear threat.

The Nixon doctrine was announced at the time of the Vietnam War. And in contradiction to what the doctrine said, US troops were already involved in the conflict.

Although Nixon announced the doctrine, the US did not fully adhere to it as seen in the invasions of Cambodia (1970) and Laos (1971).

Henry Kissinger was called a realist who put stock in realpolitik, that is, taking decisions on practicality and real situations rather than on moral considerations.

Kissinger was credited with some of the major foreign policy successes.

<h2>Rapprochement with China</h2>

China and the US have sparred over Taiwan for decades. During Kissinger's time, China was emerging as a formidable global power but he remained firm on his position that Taiwan was not a part of the Chinese territory.

Kissinger developed what is called 'triangular diplomacy' and sought to align the US with China to form a semblance of coalition against China's Communist rival Soviet Russia, which was a US adversary too.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/bhopal-gas-tragedy-and-henry-kissingers-controversial-legacy-of-secretive-dealings-665120">Bhopal gas tragedy and Henry Kissinger's controversial legacy of secretive dealings</a>

Though US and China's position&nbsp;on Taiwan was poles apart, Kissinger's diplomatic efforts with top Chinese leadership resulted in the groundbreaking 1972 summit between Nixon, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, and Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong.

<h2>Detente with Soviet Union</h2>

America's efforts to draw closer to China did not mean it abandoned the policy of stabilising relations with the Soviet Union.&nbsp;Kissinger had a part to play in this.

He developed a policy with the aim to establish&nbsp;warmer political ties with the Soviet Union. Kissinger's efforts eventually culminated in the revival of talks between the two superpowers to mutually reduce the size of their nuclear arsenal.

The US and Soviet Russia signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty, SALT I and SALT II, in 1972 and 1979 respectively.

<h2>Shuttle diplomacy</h2>

So indelible is Kissinger's mark on the world and art of diplomacy that a separate term was coined to describe his efforts toward cessation of hostilities in the Arab-Israel war of 1973.

A shuttle diplomacy is when two mediating parties do not have direct contact and a mediator travels between the principal locations of each to carry on the negotiation. Kissinger's effort in the 1973 war, also known as the Yom Kippur War helped disengage the warring sides.

<h2>Kissinger and controversies</h2>

Kissinger was undoubtedly one of the most prominent diplomats of the 20th century. He&nbsp;shaped the contours of world politics and there&nbsp;are no two opinions to it. However, Kissinger's critics have at times&nbsp;called him a 'war criminal' because of the direct or indirect effects of his diplomatic strategies.

Although Kissinger was heavily involved in the diplomatic efforts surrounding the Vietnam War, some of his critics say that his efforts worsened the situation. He also faced flak for America's bombing of Cambodia, which was a noncombatant country in the context of the Vietnam War.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/kissinger-should-have-apologised-for-1971-war-role-bangladesh-fm-a-k-abdul-momen-664750">Kissinger should have apologised for 1971 war role: Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen</a>

Kissinger has also been accused of supporting anti-democratic activities of right-wing governments in Latin America by way of inaction.

Then there are again the allegations that Nixon and Kissinger were ignoring mass atrocities and murders committed by the Pakistani Army in erstwhile East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and even nudged the Chinese to attack India when it sent troops to liberate Bangladesh.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/cast-from-the-past-when-kissinger-failed-to-make-china-attack-india-during-1971-bangladesh-liberation-war-664777">Cast From The Past: When Kissinger failed to make China attack India during 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War</a>

An unapologetic Realist, Kissinger did play his cards the way he wanted to. With his passing, another major personality, however controversial, from the Cold War era, is lost to time.

Henry Kissinger, the former US National Security Adviser and Secretary of State was a celebrated personality, who also faced a fair amount of criticism. But whichever way you look at him and his legacy, one thing is certain, he was one of the top statesmen who shaped not only US foreign policy but also global politics.

Henry Kissinger, the former US National Security Adviser and Secretary of State was a celebrated personality, who also faced a fair amount of criticism. But whichever way you look at him and his legacy, one thing is certain, he was one of the top statesmen who shaped not only US foreign policy but also global politics. For some, he was a 'world statesman', while others openly called him a 'war criminal' for the fallout of actions he took through his diplomacy. For Kissinger, by his own admission, power was the ultimate aphrodisiac. He dated some actresses like Jill St. John, the first American bond girl, Marsha Metrinko and others if media reports are to be believed. It is also said that his image of a playboy was only media-generated. Gravitas: How Henry Kissinger Went From India-hater to Urging for Stronger Ties × One thing is for sure, Kissinger had firm control over US foreign policy as secretary of state during the years of President Richard Nixon. The two were close, although there were differences between them regarding matters related to some world conflicts. The Nixon doctrine The so-called 'Nixon doctrine' of US policy can safely be called Nixon-Kissinger doctrine, such was Kissinger's influence. This approach was announced by President Nixon in 1969. This doctrine said that the US should help its allies with economic and military aid when a conflict occurs and should avoid sending US troops. Nixon even said that the United States could no longer afford to defend its allies fully. The US would of course uphold treaty obligations but would also expect allies to contribute for their own defence. However, Nixon assured the allies that US nuclear assets would continue to protect them in case of a nuclear threat. The Nixon doctrine was announced at the time of the Vietnam War. And in contradiction to what the doctrine said, US troops were already involved in the conflict. Although Nixon announced the doctrine, the US did not fully adhere to it as seen in the invasions of Cambodia (1970) and Laos (1971). Henry Kissinger was called a realist who put stock in realpolitik, that is, taking decisions on practicality and real situations rather than on moral considerations. Kissinger was credited with some of the major foreign policy successes. Rapprochement with China China and the US have sparred over Taiwan for decades. During Kissinger's time, China was emerging as a formidable global power but he remained firm on his position that Taiwan was not a part of the Chinese territory. Kissinger developed what is called 'triangular diplomacy' and sought to align the US with China to form a semblance of coalition against China's Communist rival Soviet Russia, which was a US adversary too. Also Read | Bhopal gas tragedy and Henry Kissinger's controversial legacy of secretive dealings Though US and China's position on Taiwan was poles apart, Kissinger's diplomatic efforts with top Chinese leadership resulted in the groundbreaking 1972 summit between Nixon, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, and Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong. Detente with Soviet Union America's efforts to draw closer to China did not mean it abandoned the policy of stabilising relations with the Soviet Union. Kissinger had a part to play in this. He developed a policy with the aim to establish warmer political ties with the Soviet Union. Kissinger's efforts eventually culminated in the revival of talks between the two superpowers to mutually reduce the size of their nuclear arsenal. The US and Soviet Russia signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty, SALT I and SALT II, in 1972 and 1979 respectively. Shuttle diplomacy So indelible is Kissinger's mark on the world and art of diplomacy that a separate term was coined to describe his efforts toward cessation of hostilities in the Arab-Israel war of 1973. A shuttle diplomacy is when two mediating parties do not have direct contact and a mediator travels between the principal locations of each to carry on the negotiation. Kissinger's effort in the 1973 war, also known as the Yom Kippur War helped disengage the warring sides. Kissinger and controversies Kissinger was undoubtedly one of the most prominent diplomats of the 20th century. He shaped the contours of world politics and there are no two opinions to it. However, Kissinger's critics have at times called him a 'war criminal' because of the direct or indirect effects of his diplomatic strategies. Although Kissinger was heavily involved in the diplomatic efforts surrounding the Vietnam War, some of his critics say that his efforts worsened the situation. He also faced flak for America's bombing of Cambodia, which was a noncombatant country in the context of the Vietnam War. Also Read | Kissinger should have apologised for 1971 war role: Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen Kissinger has also been accused of supporting anti-democratic activities of right-wing governments in Latin America by way of inaction. Then there are again the allegations that Nixon and Kissinger were ignoring mass atrocities and murders committed by the Pakistani Army in erstwhile East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and even nudged the Chinese to attack India when it sent troops to liberate Bangladesh. Also Read | Cast From The Past: When Kissinger failed to make China attack India during 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War An unapologetic Realist, Kissinger did play his cards the way he wanted to. With his passing, another major personality, however controversial, from the Cold War era, is lost to time.

Explained: Henry Kissinger's foreign policy, achievements and controversies

Former US State Secretary Henry Kissinger’s death has sparked a bitter remembrance in Latin America, particularly in Chile, where his involvement in the 1973 coup left a lasting impact, along with his role in Operation Condor.

Juan Gabriel Valdes, Chile’s ambassador to the US, as quoted by the Guardian said, "Henry Kissinger was a man whose historical brilliance was never able to conceal his profound moral wretchedness."

The 1973 coup orchestrated by Kissinger led to the demise of democratically elected socialist president Salvador Allende, paving the way for the brutal dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.

While speaking about Kissinger’s role in disrupting Chile’s constitutional order, historian Gabriel Salazar, said, “He provoked the downfall of [Allende’s] developmental policies and then the installation of the neoliberal economic model which is still in place today – that’s why we associate Kissinger with Pinochet here in Chile.”

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/british-army-used-solar-panels-created-out-of-forced-labour-in-china-report-665787">British Army used solar panels created out of forced labour in China: report</a>

Declassified files published by the NSA underscore Kissinger’s pivotal role in the Chilean coup. But Kissinger's influence extended beyond Chile as he played a role in Operation Condor.

Operation Condor was a covert intelligence-sharing and coordination programme that took place in the 1970s and early 1980s among the intelligence agencies of several South American countries. The operation was conducted to eliminate political opposition and left-wing activism across the region.

Peter Kornbluh, senior analyst at the US' National Security Archive, reportedly highlighted Kissinger's disregard for human rights, noting that he embraced repressive regimes as strategic pawns in the global chessboard of the Cold War.

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<h2>Argentina&nbsp;</h2>

Myriam Bregman, an Argentine human rights lawyer, accused Kissinger of encouraging coups and justifying genocidal actions against workers and students in the region.

Kissinger's controversial stance during then US President Jimmy Carter’s pro-human rights presidency further fuelled criticism.

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As Latin America is looking back on Kissinger’s dark legacy, the sentiments are one of deep-seated resentment for his role in supporting authoritarian regimes and undermining democratic processes in the pursuit of geopolitical interests.
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(With inputs from agencies)

Former US State Secretary Henry Kissinger’s death has sparked a bitter remembrance in Latin America, particularly in Chile, where his involvement in the 1973 coup left a lasting impact, along with his role in Operation Condor.

Former US State Secretary Henry Kissinger’s death has sparked a bitter remembrance in Latin America, particularly in Chile, where his involvement in the 1973 coup left a lasting impact, along with his role in Operation Condor. Juan Gabriel Valdes, Chile’s ambassador to the US, as quoted by the Guardian said, "Henry Kissinger was a man whose historical brilliance was never able to conceal his profound moral wretchedness." The 1973 coup orchestrated by Kissinger led to the demise of democratically elected socialist president Salvador Allende, paving the way for the brutal dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet. While speaking about Kissinger’s role in disrupting Chile’s constitutional order, historian Gabriel Salazar, said, “He provoked the downfall of [Allende’s] developmental policies and then the installation of the neoliberal economic model which is still in place today – that’s why we associate Kissinger with Pinochet here in Chile.” Also Read | British Army used solar panels created out of forced labour in China: report Declassified files published by the NSA underscore Kissinger’s pivotal role in the Chilean coup. But Kissinger's influence extended beyond Chile as he played a role in Operation Condor. Operation Condor was a covert intelligence-sharing and coordination programme that took place in the 1970s and early 1980s among the intelligence agencies of several South American countries. The operation was conducted to eliminate political opposition and left-wing activism across the region. Peter Kornbluh, senior analyst at the US' National Security Archive, reportedly highlighted Kissinger's disregard for human rights, noting that he embraced repressive regimes as strategic pawns in the global chessboard of the Cold War. WATCH | Indonesia's Marapi volcano erupts, blanketing West Sumatra with layers of ash Argentina Myriam Bregman, an Argentine human rights lawyer, accused Kissinger of encouraging coups and justifying genocidal actions against workers and students in the region. Kissinger's controversial stance during then US President Jimmy Carter’s pro-human rights presidency further fuelled criticism. Watch | Israel-Hamas war: Hamas says not talks till the bombing stops on Gaza × As Latin America is looking back on Kissinger’s dark legacy, the sentiments are one of deep-seated resentment for his role in supporting authoritarian regimes and undermining democratic processes in the pursuit of geopolitical interests. (With inputs from agencies)

Latin America remembers Kissinger's dark legacy bitterly, Chile's 'Pinochet' and his role in Operation Condor

The recent passing of US diplomat and former secretary of state Henry Kissinger has reignited discussions about his involvement in global affairs. Kissinger has left behind a controversial legacy and one such episode links the diplomat with what transpired in the wake of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy in India.&nbsp;

For the new generation, the starting point to understand the tragedy could be the&nbsp;web series The Railway Men,&nbsp;which was released on Netflix on November 18, 2023. It encapsulates the entire tragedy that claimed thousands of lives in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, while also leaving a lasting tragic impact on generations to come.

The&nbsp;tragedy which took place on the intervening nights of December 2 and 3, 1984, was caused by a deadly leak of methyl isocyanate gas from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal. It resulted in over 3,000 fatalities and affected more than 100,000 individuals.

People living in the widespread area surrounding the factory went through the horrors of respiratory ailments, skin burns and blindness. Many others reportedly died gasping for breath.&nbsp;

<h2>How is Kissinger linked with Bhopal gas tragedy?&nbsp;</h2>

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/after-g20-success-pm-modi-in-dubai-lays-ground-for-cop33-summit-in-2028-665096">After G20 success, PM Modi in Dubai lays ground for COP33 summit in 2028</a>

The chairman of Union Carbide Warren Anderson was arrested, only to be subsequently released on bail. The Indian government pursued a claim for $3.3 billion in damages against Union Carbide in a New York district court.

Kissinger's connection to Union Carbide became evident through his consulting firm Kissinger Associates which took on Union Carbide as a client following the catastrophe. The firm lobbied persistently on behalf of Union Carbide, engaging in delay tactics and&nbsp; prolonged legal battles.&nbsp;

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/uttarakhands-silkyara-barkot-tunnel-collapsed-19-to-20-times-in-last-5-years-report-665091">Uttarakhand's Silkyara-Barkot tunnel collapsed 19 to 20 times in last 5 years: Report</a>

In 1988, Kissinger backed&nbsp;an increased payout for the victims of the tragedy, if an out-of-the-court settlement was reached, reports said.&nbsp;

A revealing letter from Indian industrialist JRD Tata to then-prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in May 1988 further exposed Kissinger's deep involvement in the compensation negotiations for the victims that "would effectively counter any attack or criticism".

"Dr Henry Kissinger, who is a leading member of the Committee and a good friend of mine, is, as you may know, a consultant and adviser to many governments and large corporations, including Union Carbide in America. He told me of their and his own concern at the long delay in reaching an agreement on the amount of the compensation to be paid to the victims of the Bhopal disaster," Tata's letter read.

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However, as per reports, the $470 million settlement faced widespread condemnation for being woefully insufficient in addressing the scale of the tragedy. Criticisms are also centered on the dropping of all charges against Union Carbide and its managers. However, that was overturned by the Supreme Court in 1991.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

The recent passing of US diplomat and former secretary of state Henry Kissinger has reignited discussions about his involvement in global affairs. Kissinger has left behind a controversial legacy and one such episode links the diplomat with what transpired in the wake of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy in India.

The recent passing of US diplomat and former secretary of state Henry Kissinger has reignited discussions about his involvement in global affairs. Kissinger has left behind a controversial legacy and one such episode links the diplomat with what transpired in the wake of the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy in India. For the new generation, the starting point to understand the tragedy could be the web series The Railway Men, which was released on Netflix on November 18, 2023. It encapsulates the entire tragedy that claimed thousands of lives in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, while also leaving a lasting tragic impact on generations to come. The tragedy which took place on the intervening nights of December 2 and 3, 1984, was caused by a deadly leak of methyl isocyanate gas from the Union Carbide factory in Bhopal. It resulted in over 3,000 fatalities and affected more than 100,000 individuals. People living in the widespread area surrounding the factory went through the horrors of respiratory ailments, skin burns and blindness. Many others reportedly died gasping for breath. How is Kissinger linked with Bhopal gas tragedy? Also Read | After G20 success, PM Modi in Dubai lays ground for COP33 summit in 2028 The chairman of Union Carbide Warren Anderson was arrested, only to be subsequently released on bail. The Indian government pursued a claim for $3.3 billion in damages against Union Carbide in a New York district court. Kissinger's connection to Union Carbide became evident through his consulting firm Kissinger Associates which took on Union Carbide as a client following the catastrophe. The firm lobbied persistently on behalf of Union Carbide, engaging in delay tactics and prolonged legal battles. Also Read | Uttarakhand's Silkyara-Barkot tunnel collapsed 19 to 20 times in last 5 years: Report In 1988, Kissinger backed an increased payout for the victims of the tragedy, if an out-of-the-court settlement was reached, reports said. A revealing letter from Indian industrialist JRD Tata to then-prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in May 1988 further exposed Kissinger's deep involvement in the compensation negotiations for the victims that "would effectively counter any attack or criticism". "Dr Henry Kissinger, who is a leading member of the Committee and a good friend of mine, is, as you may know, a consultant and adviser to many governments and large corporations, including Union Carbide in America. He told me of their and his own concern at the long delay in reaching an agreement on the amount of the compensation to be paid to the victims of the Bhopal disaster," Tata's letter read. Watch | US Secretary of State Antony Blinken lauds India on probe, says 'looking forward for results × However, as per reports, the $470 million settlement faced widespread condemnation for being woefully insufficient in addressing the scale of the tragedy. Criticisms are also centered on the dropping of all charges against Union Carbide and its managers. However, that was overturned by the Supreme Court in 1991. (With inputs from agencies)

Bhopal gas tragedy and Henry Kissinger's controversial legacy of secretive dealings

Henry Kissinger, one of the most influential American diplomats ever, passed away at 100. While many remember him for his illustrious life as a political figure, others remember his somewhat chequered past.

Gravitas: How Henry Kissinger Went From India-hater to Urging for Stronger Ties

Henry Kissinger, former US secretary of state and one of the most controversial Americans of the twentieth century, has died at the age of 100 in Connecticut. Kissinger's death was reported by Kissinger Associates, Inc in a statement. Kissinger's legacy remains intertwined with the death toll of several million during America's humiliating defeat in the Vietnam War and his ability to establish Washington-Beijing ties through an astute blend of people-to-people ties and covert interactions of unprecedented natures in the early 1970s.

Kissinger died at his home in Connecticut, Kissinger Associates said. He was awarded Nobel Peace Prize "for jointly having negotiated a cease-fire in Vietnam in 1973".

Kissinger was active during his last months and attended meetings in the White House, where he was revered even in unofficial capacities. In July 2023, he made a surprise visit to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, a diplomatic opening he helped open up nearly five decades ago, in one of the most significant geopolitical events of the twentieth century.&nbsp;

The scholar-turned-diplomat advised a dozen US Presidents, from John F. Kennedy to the current President Joe Biden. A German-Jewish refugee in the United States, Kissinger is celebrated, reviled, and denounced in different parts of the world.&nbsp;

Kissinger often trampled upon the purported American values, Washington officially advocated during and even after the Cold War, to meet American interests.&nbsp;

Kissinger deployed ambition and intellect to remake the American relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. His ability to put the notion that 'America has no permanent friends or enemies' into the geopolitical vogue of the twentieth century continues to mark Washington's present-day worldview.&nbsp;

He is hailed as an ultra-realist who, for better or worse, transformed every diplomatic equation he touched. Between Kennedy and Biden, and from Vietnam to Iraq to Afghanistan, Kissinger's role remained indispensable to Washington's corridors of power,&nbsp;in every war waged by the US.

Henry Kissinger, former US secretary of state and one of the most controversial Americans of the twentieth century, has died at the age of 100 in Connecticut. Kissinger's death was reported by Kissinger Associates, Inc in a statement.

Henry Kissinger, former US secretary of state and one of the most controversial Americans of the twentieth century, has died at the age of 100 in Connecticut. Kissinger's death was reported by Kissinger Associates, Inc in a statement. Kissinger's legacy remains intertwined with the death toll of several million during America's humiliating defeat in the Vietnam War and his ability to establish Washington-Beijing ties through an astute blend of people-to-people ties and covert interactions of unprecedented natures in the early 1970s. Kissinger died at his home in Connecticut, Kissinger Associates said. He was awarded Nobel Peace Prize "for jointly having negotiated a cease-fire in Vietnam in 1973". Kissinger was active during his last months and attended meetings in the White House, where he was revered even in unofficial capacities. In July 2023, he made a surprise visit to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, a diplomatic opening he helped open up nearly five decades ago, in one of the most significant geopolitical events of the twentieth century. The scholar-turned-diplomat advised a dozen US Presidents, from John F. Kennedy to the current President Joe Biden. A German-Jewish refugee in the United States, Kissinger is celebrated, reviled, and denounced in different parts of the world. Kissinger often trampled upon the purported American values, Washington officially advocated during and even after the Cold War, to meet American interests. Kissinger deployed ambition and intellect to remake the American relationship with the Soviet Union during the Cold War. His ability to put the notion that 'America has no permanent friends or enemies' into the geopolitical vogue of the twentieth century continues to mark Washington's present-day worldview. He is hailed as an ultra-realist who, for better or worse, transformed every diplomatic equation he touched. Between Kennedy and Biden, and from Vietnam to Iraq to Afghanistan, Kissinger's role remained indispensable to Washington's corridors of power, in every war waged by the US.

Henry Kissinger, America's most controversial and equally influential diplomat, dies at 100

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has expressed strong criticism of Henry Kissinger, the former US secretary of state who died at the age of 100, for his role in the 1971 war. Momen asserted that Kissinger supported the Pakistani military regime during the war and failed to apologise to the people of Bangladesh for his actions.

Kissinger, a key figure in Cold War foreign policy, passed away on Thursday (Nov 30).

"Henry Kissinger has been an iconic diplomat, he played an immense role in the diplomatic world, particularly designing US policy abroad," acknowledged Momen, reflecting on Kissinger's overall legacy.

However, the foreign minister did not shy away from pointing out Kissinger's actions during the 1971 India-Pakistan war that led to the creation of Bangladesh, stating, "But unfortunately, in 1971, he was dead against the people of the then East Pakistan."

Momen highlighted his role in violating "all American laws, international laws to support Pakistani military junta and also supplied weapons to illegally occupying forces of Pakistan".

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The Nixon administration, under which Kissinger served, had taken a strong anti-India stance during the 1971 Bangladesh liberation war and supported Pakistan.

Bangladesh Liberation War saw West Pakistani military actions in East Pakistan leading to over a million deaths and several other millions becoming refugees. &nbsp;"That is very sad for such a smart man to do such inhumane things; it is not acceptable," Momen emphasised.

Amid the war, the US deployed the warship USS Enterprise in the Bay of Bengal in a bid to support the then West Pakistan, but that did not give any advantage to the Pakistani military establishment.

The foreign minister delved into the motivations behind Kissinger's controversial decisions, pointing out that his pursuit of "ping pong diplomacy" and his desire to shape US relations with China and Pakistan influenced his stance during the 1971 war.

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Momen explained, "In order to satisfy General Yahya [Khan], he did all those mischievous things, so it's very sad."

Kissinger, who was Nixon's NSA, had secretly traveled to Beijing during his visit to Pakistan. That visit led to the 1972 visit of Richard Nixon to China to further improve ties, and by 1979, Washington had established full diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China.

Expressing disappointment in Kissinger's failure to base decisions on facts rather than emotions, Momen added, "When you take a decision, that should be fact-based, not subject to emotions. Unfortunately, people like Kissinger with so much wisdom failed to rise to the occasion."

<section>
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Despite acknowledging Kissinger's impact on global diplomacy, the foreign minister stressed that an apology was warranted.
</section>

"We feel that he should have apologised to the people of Bangladesh for what he has done—the genocide, mass killing of the people of then East Pakistan," Momen declared.

"That is sad." &nbsp;

&nbsp;

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has expressed strong criticism of Henry Kissinger, the former US secretary of state who died at the age of 100, for his role in the 1971 war.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen has expressed strong criticism of Henry Kissinger, the former US secretary of state who died at the age of 100, for his role in the 1971 war. Momen asserted that Kissinger supported the Pakistani military regime during the war and failed to apologise to the people of Bangladesh for his actions. Kissinger, a key figure in Cold War foreign policy, passed away on Thursday (Nov 30). "Henry Kissinger has been an iconic diplomat, he played an immense role in the diplomatic world, particularly designing US policy abroad," acknowledged Momen, reflecting on Kissinger's overall legacy. However, the foreign minister did not shy away from pointing out Kissinger's actions during the 1971 India-Pakistan war that led to the creation of Bangladesh, stating, "But unfortunately, in 1971, he was dead against the people of the then East Pakistan." Momen highlighted his role in violating "all American laws, international laws to support Pakistani military junta and also supplied weapons to illegally occupying forces of Pakistan". Also Read | Cancer-stricken mother appeals for release of daughter held hostage by Hamas. Watch Video The Nixon administration, under which Kissinger served, had taken a strong anti-India stance during the 1971 Bangladesh liberation war and supported Pakistan. Bangladesh Liberation War saw West Pakistani military actions in East Pakistan leading to over a million deaths and several other millions becoming refugees. "That is very sad for such a smart man to do such inhumane things; it is not acceptable," Momen emphasised. Amid the war, the US deployed the warship USS Enterprise in the Bay of Bengal in a bid to support the then West Pakistan, but that did not give any advantage to the Pakistani military establishment. The foreign minister delved into the motivations behind Kissinger's controversial decisions, pointing out that his pursuit of "ping pong diplomacy" and his desire to shape US relations with China and Pakistan influenced his stance during the 1971 war. Also Read | Will still fund Trump campaign even if he's convicted, says Home Depot billionaire Momen explained, "In order to satisfy General Yahya [Khan], he did all those mischievous things, so it's very sad." Kissinger, who was Nixon's NSA, had secretly traveled to Beijing during his visit to Pakistan. That visit led to the 1972 visit of Richard Nixon to China to further improve ties, and by 1979, Washington had established full diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China. Expressing disappointment in Kissinger's failure to base decisions on facts rather than emotions, Momen added, "When you take a decision, that should be fact-based, not subject to emotions. Unfortunately, people like Kissinger with so much wisdom failed to rise to the occasion." Watch | Jerusalem: 3 dead & 6 wounded in Jerusalem shooting; deadly attack after Israel-Hamas truce × Despite acknowledging Kissinger's impact on global diplomacy, the foreign minister stressed that an apology was warranted. "We feel that he should have apologised to the people of Bangladesh for what he has done—the genocide, mass killing of the people of then East Pakistan," Momen declared. "That is sad."

Kissinger should have apologised for 1971 war role: Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen

Former US Secretary of State and National Security adviser Henry Kissinger passed away on Wednesday. The controversial Nobel Peace Prize winner Henry Kissinger left an indelible mark on US foreign policy leaders and others across the world offered glowing tributes to him.

Former U.S Diplomat Henry Kissinger, an unapologetic realist dies at 100 | WION

US: Henry Kissinger, who served as Secretary of State to Presidents, dies at 100 | World News | WION

There is a gentle irony of fate on a day when news breaks that police in the US have indicted an Indian government official on attempts to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, an American citizen. Within hours of this, we get news of the demise at the ripe age of 100 of Henry Kissinger, who, depending on who you are talking to — and where — is a master diplomat who promoted American interests or a war criminal who left a bloody trail across the planet thanks to the superpower-hungry behaviour of Uncle Sam.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/henry-kissinger-the-most-controversial-and-influential-american-of-20th-century-dies-at-100-664470">Henry Kissinger, America's most controversial and equally influential diplomat, dies at 100</a>

If Alexander the Great's historic attempt to conquer the world through an eastward march of his army was stopped on the shores of the Indus, you could argue with some imagination that Henry Kissinger's attempts to do pretty much the same in Cold War mode for America met the same fate on the shores of the Yamuna, when Indira Gandhi was the Indian prime minister who steered the emergence of Bangladesh as a new nation on the world map, defying Washington's bully diplomacy.

She was aided ably by an Indian Army headed by General Sam Manekshaw, on whom a&nbsp;Bollywood biopic is scheduled to release later this week.

I have shared on social media my modified version of a joke that used to be popular in the Lutyens' zone of the Indian capital in the 1970s, after he visited India in 1974, three years following the diplomat's failed attempts to use Pakistan and China to contain Soviet influence on India.

Kissinger visits Israel and is gifted a suit length. Tel Aviv tailors say it is too small. Tailors in Cairo say the same thing. Arriving in Indira Gandhi's New Delhi he is taken to Lodi Colony, famous for its Sikh tailors who can handcraft the best of outfits.&nbsp;

Come evening, the American super diplomat gets a perfect-fit suit stitched from the same cloth.&nbsp;

"How could you do it? They couldn't do it in the Middle East," he tells the tailor.

"You are big man there," the tailor says, adjusting his turban. "Not here."

Kissinger, a Jewish refugee who fled Nazi Germany to become a highly educated diplomat and served first as National Security Adviser and later as Secretary of State during the administrations of US presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford between 1969 and 1977, ostensibly served American interests through his shuttle diplomacy but merrily oversaw the violation of other ostensible values of US foreign policy: democracy and human rights.&nbsp;

Also watch |&nbsp;Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger dies aged 100

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Kissinger went soft on Pakistan and hard on India when an estimated 10 million refugees fleeing for their safety streamed into India from the erstwhile&nbsp;East Pakistan that became Bangladesh in 1971.

The Pakistani army and its affiliated groups are estimated to have killed three million people and raped about 300,000 women in one of the biggest human rights disasters in a century notorious for such violations of human principles. 
 
The My-America-right-or-wrong approach of Kissinger, also described as "realpolitik" was just sheer pragmatism in reckless short-term motion.

Backroom chats revealed later in which&nbsp;Kissinger described Indira Gandhi as a 'b..ch' and Indians as "bastards" show that old Henry was far from the Harvard-educated savant that some chose to see him as.

He explained his behaviour later as born out of dedication to American "values" — but was basically little more than "Stop the Kremlin any which way".

India in August 1971 signed a friendship treaty with the Soviet Union that helped Indira Gandhi stand up to US naval threats during the Bangladesh War. Pakistan's political implosion after the war and a newborn Bangladesh standing with India proved that in South Asia, Kissinger was not a big man but a sore loser — true to the tailor joke.

Enough details are available on America's record in the Viet Nam War (which won Kissinger a controversial Nobel Prize) and the US Central Intelligence Agency's role in the assassination of democratically elected president Salvador Allende in Chile in 1973 to suggest that Washington's human rights and democratic postures have been dubious and questionable.

Kissinger pressed &nbsp;President Richard Nixon to overthrow Allende, who was killed in a military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet, whose regime was notorious for human rights violations. Kissinger would later laud the general by saying: "We want to help, not undermine you. You did a great service to the West in overthrowing Allende."

The fact that Kissinger won the Nobel Prize in the same year as the Chilean coup says a lot — about the prize, Kissinger, and US diplomacy.&nbsp;

Should one mention the fact that he was the National Security Adviser in the Watergate phone-tapping scandal years that led to Nixon's ouster from the White House? Perhaps Kissinger's unintended contribution to democracy was the eventual rise of investigative journalism.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

There is a gentle irony of fate on a day when news breaks that police in the US have indicted an Indian government official on attempts to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, an American citizen.

There is a gentle irony of fate on a day when news breaks that police in the US have indicted an Indian government official on attempts to kill Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, an American citizen. Within hours of this, we get news of the demise at the ripe age of 100 of Henry Kissinger, who, depending on who you are talking to — and where — is a master diplomat who promoted American interests or a war criminal who left a bloody trail across the planet thanks to the superpower-hungry behaviour of Uncle Sam. Also read | Henry Kissinger, America's most controversial and equally influential diplomat, dies at 100 If Alexander the Great's historic attempt to conquer the world through an eastward march of his army was stopped on the shores of the Indus, you could argue with some imagination that Henry Kissinger's attempts to do pretty much the same in Cold War mode for America met the same fate on the shores of the Yamuna, when Indira Gandhi was the Indian prime minister who steered the emergence of Bangladesh as a new nation on the world map, defying Washington's bully diplomacy. She was aided ably by an Indian Army headed by General Sam Manekshaw, on whom a Bollywood biopic is scheduled to release later this week. I have shared on social media my modified version of a joke that used to be popular in the Lutyens' zone of the Indian capital in the 1970s, after he visited India in 1974, three years following the diplomat's failed attempts to use Pakistan and China to contain Soviet influence on India. Kissinger visits Israel and is gifted a suit length. Tel Aviv tailors say it is too small. Tailors in Cairo say the same thing. Arriving in Indira Gandhi's New Delhi he is taken to Lodi Colony, famous for its Sikh tailors who can handcraft the best of outfits. Come evening, the American super diplomat gets a perfect-fit suit stitched from the same cloth. "How could you do it? They couldn't do it in the Middle East," he tells the tailor. "You are big man there," the tailor says, adjusting his turban. "Not here." Kissinger, a Jewish refugee who fled Nazi Germany to become a highly educated diplomat and served first as National Security Adviser and later as Secretary of State during the administrations of US presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford between 1969 and 1977, ostensibly served American interests through his shuttle diplomacy but merrily oversaw the violation of other ostensible values of US foreign policy: democracy and human rights. Also watch | Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger dies aged 100 × Kissinger went soft on Pakistan and hard on India when an estimated 10 million refugees fleeing for their safety streamed into India from the erstwhile East Pakistan that became Bangladesh in 1971. The Pakistani army and its affiliated groups are estimated to have killed three million people and raped about 300,000 women in one of the biggest human rights disasters in a century notorious for such violations of human principles. The My-America-right-or-wrong approach of Kissinger, also described as "realpolitik" was just sheer pragmatism in reckless short-term motion. Backroom chats revealed later in which Kissinger described Indira Gandhi as a 'b..ch' and Indians as "bastards" show that old Henry was far from the Harvard-educated savant that some chose to see him as. He explained his behaviour later as born out of dedication to American "values" — but was basically little more than "Stop the Kremlin any which way". India in August 1971 signed a friendship treaty with the Soviet Union that helped Indira Gandhi stand up to US naval threats during the Bangladesh War. Pakistan's political implosion after the war and a newborn Bangladesh standing with India proved that in South Asia, Kissinger was not a big man but a sore loser — true to the tailor joke. Enough details are available on America's record in the Viet Nam War (which won Kissinger a controversial Nobel Prize) and the US Central Intelligence Agency's role in the assassination of democratically elected president Salvador Allende in Chile in 1973 to suggest that Washington's human rights and democratic postures have been dubious and questionable. Kissinger pressed President Richard Nixon to overthrow Allende, who was killed in a military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet, whose regime was notorious for human rights violations. Kissinger would later laud the general by saying: "We want to help, not undermine you. You did a great service to the West in overthrowing Allende." The fact that Kissinger won the Nobel Prize in the same year as the Chilean coup says a lot — about the prize, Kissinger, and US diplomacy. Should one mention the fact that he was the National Security Adviser in the Watergate phone-tapping scandal years that led to Nixon's ouster from the White House? Perhaps Kissinger's unintended contribution to democracy was the eventual rise of investigative journalism. (Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

Dubious strategist, ruthless diplomat, South Asian loser: Kissinger's bull run was stopped by Indian defiance

The former United States Secretary of State and noted diplomat Henry Kissinger has passed away at his home in Connecticut.

American diplomat Henry Kissinger's role in Vietnam-Bangladesh war

Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, is currently in Beijing and met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, which was quite unusual as meeting with the Chinese premier was excluded during the recent visits by US officials.&nbsp;

The state broadcaster CCTV said that Xi met Kissinger at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and hailed the 100-year-old Kissinger's role in opening up ties between China and the US in the 1970s.&nbsp;

Xi told Kissinger that "old friends" like him will never be forgotten and added that "once again, China and the US are at a crossroads on&nbsp;where to go from here, and once again, both sides need to make a choice".&nbsp;

Xi said his visit this time is of "special significance" as he noted that Kissinger has just celebrated his 100th birthday and has visited China more than 100 times. &nbsp;

"The Chinese people never forget their old friends and Sino-US relations will always be linked with the name of Henry Kissinger," Xi told him.&nbsp;

Kissinger secretly flew to Beijing in July 1971 on a mission to establish relations with communist China. He was then US national security adviser and had emerged as a vital cog in normalising ties between Washington and Beijing in the 1970s.&nbsp;

At that time, he served as secretary of state and national security adviser in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.&nbsp;

Kissinger has grown wealthy advising businesses in China since leaving office. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate has warned against a hawkish turn in US policy.&nbsp;

CCTV said on Wednesday, "Since 1971, Dr. Kissinger has visited China more than 100 times."&nbsp;

"On May 27 this year, the legendary diplomat celebrated his 100th birthday, and this visit is also his first trip to China since turning 100," it added.&nbsp;

<h2>Meeting amid frayed US-China ties&nbsp;</h2>

This meeting is also seen as an attempt by Beijing and Washington to mend the ties between them.&nbsp;

Kissinger said in the meeting, "Under the current circumstances, it is imperative to maintain the principles established by the Shanghai Communique, appreciate the utmost importance China attaches to the one-China principle, and move the relationship in a positive direction."&nbsp;

Meanwhile, &nbsp;Xi said that "China is willing to discuss with the US side the right way for the two countries to get along and promote the steady progress of China-US relations."&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies) 
 
&nbsp;

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Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, is currently in Beijing and met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, which was quite unusual as meeting with the Chinese premier was excluded during the recent visits by US officials.

Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, is currently in Beijing and met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday, which was quite unusual as meeting with the Chinese premier was excluded during the recent visits by US officials. The state broadcaster CCTV said that Xi met Kissinger at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and hailed the 100-year-old Kissinger's role in opening up ties between China and the US in the 1970s. Xi told Kissinger that "old friends" like him will never be forgotten and added that "once again, China and the US are at a crossroads on where to go from here, and once again, both sides need to make a choice". Xi said his visit this time is of "special significance" as he noted that Kissinger has just celebrated his 100th birthday and has visited China more than 100 times. "The Chinese people never forget their old friends and Sino-US relations will always be linked with the name of Henry Kissinger," Xi told him. Kissinger secretly flew to Beijing in July 1971 on a mission to establish relations with communist China. He was then US national security adviser and had emerged as a vital cog in normalising ties between Washington and Beijing in the 1970s. At that time, he served as secretary of state and national security adviser in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Kissinger has grown wealthy advising businesses in China since leaving office. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate has warned against a hawkish turn in US policy. CCTV said on Wednesday, "Since 1971, Dr. Kissinger has visited China more than 100 times." "On May 27 this year, the legendary diplomat celebrated his 100th birthday, and this visit is also his first trip to China since turning 100," it added. Meeting amid frayed US-China ties This meeting is also seen as an attempt by Beijing and Washington to mend the ties between them. Kissinger said in the meeting, "Under the current circumstances, it is imperative to maintain the principles established by the Shanghai Communique, appreciate the utmost importance China attaches to the one-China principle, and move the relationship in a positive direction." Meanwhile, Xi said that "China is willing to discuss with the US side the right way for the two countries to get along and promote the steady progress of China-US relations." (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Xi Jinping elated after meeting with 'old friend' ex-US secretary of state Henry Kissinger

Henry Kissinger is regarded by many as a brilliant geopolitical strategist and considered by others a war criminal, Kissinger has remained a leading voice on US foreign policy since serving republican presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford in the 1970s. He turned 100 on May 27.

Kissinger: The man who controlled world's most powerful people

Few people remain influential at 100. They are either dead or about to die, frail in mind and body.

Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, is both alive and influential. He might be frail in body, but his mind is sharp. Having outlived almost all his detractors, the man once accused of a dark side that changed much of the world, has evolved over the past decades into a statesman feted by leaders globally. Nobody alive has more experience of international affairs than him, The Economist magazine recently wrote after interviewing him.

If Kissinger’s actions in countries such as Cambodia, Lao, Vietnam, Chile, Bangladesh, and Argentina among others were questionable and deeply criticised, he did have a few credits to his account, which he used well to keep himself relevant in the more than four decades since he last held any official position in the US government.

ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-defence-secretary-austin-and-german-defence-minister-pistorius-to-visit-india-596719">US Defence Secretary Austin and German Defence Minister Pistorius to visit India</a>

Kissinger’s biggest coup was bringing China out from behind the Iron Curtain at the peak of the Cold War when in 1971, he made a secret visit to Beijing after feigning illness while on an official visit to Islamabad. He jumped on a Pakistan air force aircraft and travelled to meet the Great Helmsman Mao Zedong and his deputy Chou Enlai and eventually ended up becoming a trusted friend of and advisor to successive Chinese leaders. He also must be credited with initiatives around détente with the Soviet Union and the Middle East shuttle diplomacy in the 1970s when the world was hit by the first oil crisis.

In the book A New Cold War – Henry Kissinger and the Rise of China that I co-edited we talk about how that trip and a later visit by then US&nbsp;President Richard Nixon redefined US-China relations and the global balance of power forever. More significant than the political and diplomatic stamp of acceptance was the economic empowerment of China thanks to the supportive US&nbsp;and trade policies. Kissinger, in many ways, helped create an economic behemoth that Americans today hate and fear.

Kissinger has probably written as much on issues of national and international importance as he has been written about. An army of reporters and authors have slammed him and lauded him too. Intrepid journalist Seymour Hersh “gave us the defining portrait of Kissinger as a preening paranoid, tacking between ruthlessness and sycophancy to advance his career, cursing his fate and letting fly the B-52s,” Greg Grandin wrote in his book Kissinger’s Shadows – The Long Reach of America’s Most Controversial Statesman.&nbsp; 
 
“Kissinger, in Hersh’s hands, is nonetheless Shakespearean because the pettiness gets played out on a world stage with epic consequences,” he wrote.

Indeed, Kissinger’s shadow has been both long and wide and sometimes dark. Historical documents, many available in the National Security Archives of the US record his role in the overthrow of the leadership in Chile, support for genocidal wars, secret bombing campaigns in Southeast Asia and secret wiretapping of his own officials.

And then there was East Pakistan, which became Bangladesh but not before Pakistani military carried out what the US&nbsp;envoy to Dhaka called a ‘selective genocide’ that left half a million dead, hundreds of thousands of women raped and burdened India with millions of refugees pouring in from across the border.

Kissinger and Nixon both turned a blind eye to missives from American officials in Dhaka who in a diplomatic cable accused their own government of “bending over backwards to placate the West Pak dominated government and to lessen likely and deservedly negative international public relations impact against them.” The secret military support to Pakistan continued.

In November 1971, as India grappled with the crisis and prepared to go to war against Pakistan, its western neighbour, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi travelled to Washington for talks on the issue. Nixon and Kissinger, hugely obliged to Islamabad for its help in reaching out to the Chinese weren’t very excited about the visit. Declassified documents report a conversation between the two in which Kissinger called Indians “bastards” and Nixon called Gandhi a “bitch’.

So, who is the Kissinger we might want to remember? Somebody who needed to be charged as a war criminal for the bombings in Cambodia or a sober statesman with a worldview that we need to follow?

After stepping down from the government, Kissinger reinvented himself as an advisor to global political and business leaders. He has spent time writing about and commenting on issues that matter, including jointly penning a book on challenges posed to the world by the spread of artificial intelligence.

WATCH |&nbsp;US is only two weeks away from defaulting

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There are few others than Kissinger who understand the complications around great-power confrontation as the United States and China continue to bare their teeth at each other in a world battling very different geopolitical challenges post the Covid epidemic and Russia’s war against Ukraine – both of which have introduced new economic and political uncertainties to the world.

Kissinger’s advantage is that he knows and respects history. He understands global blocs and national interests. Though an avid proponent of realism, Kissinger also appreciates that the new world needs new paradigms. Moreover, he has lived through several US presidents and every Chinese leader from Mao to Xi Jinping to appreciate the impact of the deepening fault lines between a superpower and a nation trying to be powerful.

At 100, he understands the new world and knows there is no guaranteed course. It might be worth looking at him now more as a sober statesman.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

You can&nbsp;now write for&nbsp;wionews.com&nbsp;and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/content-contribution-registration-form">here</a>.

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

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Few people remain influential at 100. They are either dead or about to die, frail in mind and body. Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, is both alive and influential.

Few people remain influential at 100. They are either dead or about to die, frail in mind and body. Henry Kissinger, the former US Secretary of State, is both alive and influential. He might be frail in body, but his mind is sharp. Having outlived almost all his detractors, the man once accused of a dark side that changed much of the world, has evolved over the past decades into a statesman feted by leaders globally. Nobody alive has more experience of international affairs than him, The Economist magazine recently wrote after interviewing him. If Kissinger’s actions in countries such as Cambodia, Lao, Vietnam, Chile, Bangladesh, and Argentina among others were questionable and deeply criticised, he did have a few credits to his account, which he used well to keep himself relevant in the more than four decades since he last held any official position in the US government. ALSO READ | US Defence Secretary Austin and German Defence Minister Pistorius to visit India Kissinger’s biggest coup was bringing China out from behind the Iron Curtain at the peak of the Cold War when in 1971, he made a secret visit to Beijing after feigning illness while on an official visit to Islamabad. He jumped on a Pakistan air force aircraft and travelled to meet the Great Helmsman Mao Zedong and his deputy Chou Enlai and eventually ended up becoming a trusted friend of and advisor to successive Chinese leaders. He also must be credited with initiatives around détente with the Soviet Union and the Middle East shuttle diplomacy in the 1970s when the world was hit by the first oil crisis. In the book A New Cold War – Henry Kissinger and the Rise of China that I co-edited we talk about how that trip and a later visit by then US President Richard Nixon redefined US-China relations and the global balance of power forever. More significant than the political and diplomatic stamp of acceptance was the economic empowerment of China thanks to the supportive US and trade policies. Kissinger, in many ways, helped create an economic behemoth that Americans today hate and fear. Kissinger has probably written as much on issues of national and international importance as he has been written about. An army of reporters and authors have slammed him and lauded him too. Intrepid journalist Seymour Hersh “gave us the defining portrait of Kissinger as a preening paranoid, tacking between ruthlessness and sycophancy to advance his career, cursing his fate and letting fly the B-52s,” Greg Grandin wrote in his book Kissinger’s Shadows – The Long Reach of America’s Most Controversial Statesman. “Kissinger, in Hersh’s hands, is nonetheless Shakespearean because the pettiness gets played out on a world stage with epic consequences,” he wrote. Indeed, Kissinger’s shadow has been both long and wide and sometimes dark. Historical documents, many available in the National Security Archives of the US record his role in the overthrow of the leadership in Chile, support for genocidal wars, secret bombing campaigns in Southeast Asia and secret wiretapping of his own officials. And then there was East Pakistan, which became Bangladesh but not before Pakistani military carried out what the US envoy to Dhaka called a ‘selective genocide’ that left half a million dead, hundreds of thousands of women raped and burdened India with millions of refugees pouring in from across the border. Kissinger and Nixon both turned a blind eye to missives from American officials in Dhaka who in a diplomatic cable accused their own government of “bending over backwards to placate the West Pak dominated government and to lessen likely and deservedly negative international public relations impact against them.” The secret military support to Pakistan continued. In November 1971, as India grappled with the crisis and prepared to go to war against Pakistan, its western neighbour, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi travelled to Washington for talks on the issue. Nixon and Kissinger, hugely obliged to Islamabad for its help in reaching out to the Chinese weren’t very excited about the visit. Declassified documents report a conversation between the two in which Kissinger called Indians “bastards” and Nixon called Gandhi a “bitch’. So, who is the Kissinger we might want to remember? Somebody who needed to be charged as a war criminal for the bombings in Cambodia or a sober statesman with a worldview that we need to follow? After stepping down from the government, Kissinger reinvented himself as an advisor to global political and business leaders. He has spent time writing about and commenting on issues that matter, including jointly penning a book on challenges posed to the world by the spread of artificial intelligence. WATCH | US is only two weeks away from defaulting There are few others than Kissinger who understand the complications around great-power confrontation as the United States and China continue to bare their teeth at each other in a world battling very different geopolitical challenges post the Covid epidemic and Russia’s war against Ukraine – both of which have introduced new economic and political uncertainties to the world. Kissinger’s advantage is that he knows and respects history. He understands global blocs and national interests. Though an avid proponent of realism, Kissinger also appreciates that the new world needs new paradigms. Moreover, he has lived through several US presidents and every Chinese leader from Mao to Xi Jinping to appreciate the impact of the deepening fault lines between a superpower and a nation trying to be powerful. At 100, he understands the new world and knows there is no guaranteed course. It might be worth looking at him now more as a sober statesman. (Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.) You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. WATCH WION LIVE HERE

Henry Kissinger at 100: A crooked legacy

As per the former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger, China may 'recalibrate' ties with Russia. International strategist, Andrew Leung, brings you more perspective.

Xi Jinping may recalibrate after miscalculation of siding with Russia, says Henry Kissinger

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, portrayed by her lawyers as a hard-working, young, and naive businesswoman whose company simply failed, is in the headlines yet again.

The former Silicon Valley star's trial on federal fraud charges involving the now-defunct blood-testing startup, once valued at $9 billion, has started again after being postponed several times.

Beginning of the end

Theranos, a fallen unicorn company, was founded by Elizabeth Holmes, a Stanford University dropout in 2003 at the age of 19.

The American corporation was touted as a breakthrough health tech company. It claimed of designing devices that will draw a drop of blood from a finger prick and could run a range of tests more quickly and accurately than conventional laboratory means.

Holmes was a tech world celebrity whose multi-billion-dollar start-up looked set to revolutionise medical testing before it crashed and burned in a blaze of fraud claims.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/technology/prosecuters-claim-theranos-founder-told-grandiose-lies-to-cheat-investors-411755">Also read |&nbsp;Prosecuters claim Theranos founder told 'grandiose' lies to cheat investors</a>

Sure-fire winner

Political grandees like Henry Kissinger and James Mattis were drawn to the company's board; media mogul Rupert Murdoch invested his cash in what seemed to be a sure-fire winner.

Holmes was hailed as a prodigy and lauded as a visionary for her extraordinary idea and was even compared to Steve Jobs.

<img alt="cd" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f8d924ab-323a-457a-9d70-7f4759bfeefb" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%285%29_61.jpg" />

In picture:&nbsp;Theranos Founder and CEO Elizabeth Holmes (L) speaks next to Alibaba Group Executive Chairman Jack Ma during the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in New York/AFP

Youngest female billionaire

She had become the world's youngest female billionaire due to the bogus claims and gamut analysis made by the company.

At one point, she had a net worth estimated at $3.6 billion, according to Forbes magazine.

<img alt="cd" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="67b4c4dd-a44f-43ff-a851-71f8be66ea46" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%284%29_93.jpg" />

In picture:&nbsp;Elizabeth Holmes , Managing Editor, Time Magazine; Nancy Gibbs and Diane von Furstenberg attend the Time 100 Gala celebrating the Time 100 issue of the Most Influential People at The World/AFP

What went wrong?

But years of hype, and billions of dollars later, those promises unspooled; the miracle machines did not work.

Prosecutors say Holmes knew it, yet continued to lie to investors, doctors, and patients so she could raise more than $700 million.

They have alleged that Holmes and Balwani (full name and designation) defrauded investors between 2010 and 2015 and deceived patients when the company began making its tests commercially available, including via a partnership with the Walgreens drugstore chain.

The Wall Street Journal in 2015 reported that the Theranos devices were flawed and inaccurate, setting off a downward spiral for a company that had drawn investors including &nbsp;Murdoch and Oracle founder Larry Ellison.

Patients who were victims of the faulty tests received misdiagnoses of cancer, HIV, or pregnancy.

Famous topic for drama

The saga has become the subject of documentaries, podcasts, and books. A TV miniseries and a Hollywood film based on Holmes' story are in the works.

When the inaccuracies and shortcomings of the technology were exposed in a thorough investigation, Holmes was called a fallen biotech star and blamed for covering up the lies.

The company was charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission for committing an ''elaborate and years-long fraud.''

It was a warning against the "fake it till you make it" culture. And for biotech and healthcare start-ups, it's a shadow that's difficult to escape because of the constant comparisons in the public mind.

Dueling portraits

Prosecutors and defense attorneys sketched dueling portraits of fallen Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes as her trial got underway Wednesday, alternatively describing her as a greedy villain who faked her way to the top and as a passionate underdog who&nbsp;spent years trying to shake up the health care industry.

The two sides are now expected to spend the next three months trying to sway a 12-person jury impaneled to hearing the evidence in the&nbsp;case.

Holmes accused her former boyfriend Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, who was president of the blood-testing startup, of abusing her emotionally and psychologically in a relationship that spanned more than a decade.

This includes the period when the company claimed its technology could enable a wide array of medical tests with a few drops of blood.

In the court filings, Holmes' lawyers argued that the alleged "intimate partner abuse" was relevant to the question of whether she knew that financial information provided to investors and others was false.

Whatever be the result of the trial, Theranos will serve as a cautionary tale for the fast-paced world of startups and their often irrationally astronomical valuations across the world.

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, portrayed by her lawyers as a hard-working, young, and naive businesswoman whose company simply failed, is in the headlines yet again.

Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, portrayed by her lawyers as a hard-working, young, and naive businesswoman whose company simply failed, is in the headlines yet again. The former Silicon Valley star's trial on federal fraud charges involving the now-defunct blood-testing startup, once valued at $9 billion, has started again after being postponed several times. Beginning of the end Theranos, a fallen unicorn company, was founded by Elizabeth Holmes, a Stanford University dropout in 2003 at the age of 19. The American corporation was touted as a breakthrough health tech company. It claimed of designing devices that will draw a drop of blood from a finger prick and could run a range of tests more quickly and accurately than conventional laboratory means. Holmes was a tech world celebrity whose multi-billion-dollar start-up looked set to revolutionise medical testing before it crashed and burned in a blaze of fraud claims. Also read | Prosecuters claim Theranos founder told 'grandiose' lies to cheat investors Sure-fire winner Political grandees like Henry Kissinger and James Mattis were drawn to the company's board; media mogul Rupert Murdoch invested his cash in what seemed to be a sure-fire winner. Holmes was hailed as a prodigy and lauded as a visionary for her extraordinary idea and was even compared to Steve Jobs. In picture: Theranos Founder and CEO Elizabeth Holmes (L) speaks next to Alibaba Group Executive Chairman Jack Ma during the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in New York/AFP Youngest female billionaire She had become the world's youngest female billionaire due to the bogus claims and gamut analysis made by the company. At one point, she had a net worth estimated at $3.6 billion, according to Forbes magazine. In picture: Elizabeth Holmes , Managing Editor, Time Magazine; Nancy Gibbs and Diane von Furstenberg attend the Time 100 Gala celebrating the Time 100 issue of the Most Influential People at The World/AFP What went wrong? But years of hype, and billions of dollars later, those promises unspooled; the miracle machines did not work. Prosecutors say Holmes knew it, yet continued to lie to investors, doctors, and patients so she could raise more than $700 million. They have alleged that Holmes and Balwani (full name and designation) defrauded investors between 2010 and 2015 and deceived patients when the company began making its tests commercially available, including via a partnership with the Walgreens drugstore chain. The Wall Street Journal in 2015 reported that the Theranos devices were flawed and inaccurate, setting off a downward spiral for a company that had drawn investors including Murdoch and Oracle founder Larry Ellison. Patients who were victims of the faulty tests received misdiagnoses of cancer, HIV, or pregnancy. Famous topic for drama The saga has become the subject of documentaries, podcasts, and books. A TV miniseries and a Hollywood film based on Holmes' story are in the works. When the inaccuracies and shortcomings of the technology were exposed in a thorough investigation, Holmes was called a fallen biotech star and blamed for covering up the lies. The company was charged by the US Securities and Exchange Commission for committing an ''elaborate and years-long fraud.'' It was a warning against the "fake it till you make it" culture. And for biotech and healthcare start-ups, it's a shadow that's difficult to escape because of the constant comparisons in the public mind. Dueling portraits Prosecutors and defense attorneys sketched dueling portraits of fallen Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes as her trial got underway Wednesday, alternatively describing her as a greedy villain who faked her way to the top and as a passionate underdog who spent years trying to shake up the health care industry. The two sides are now expected to spend the next three months trying to sway a 12-person jury impaneled to hearing the evidence in the case. Holmes accused her former boyfriend Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani, who was president of the blood-testing startup, of abusing her emotionally and psychologically in a relationship that spanned more than a decade. This includes the period when the company claimed its technology could enable a wide array of medical tests with a few drops of blood. In the court filings, Holmes' lawyers argued that the alleged "intimate partner abuse" was relevant to the question of whether she knew that financial information provided to investors and others was false. Whatever be the result of the trial, Theranos will serve as a cautionary tale for the fast-paced world of startups and their often irrationally astronomical valuations across the world.

From visionary to fallen biotech star: The rise and fall of Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes

Senior Chinese diplomat <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/chinas-foreign-minister-wang-yi-takes-swipe-at-us-during-un-climate-summit-251592">Wang Yi </a>said on Friday the United States should meet China halfway and promote the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations, as the countries continue to clash on multiple fronts including trade and the South China Sea.

Wang, during a meeting with former US&nbsp;Secretary of State <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-china-trade-dispute-could-spark-a-real-war-world-war-i-broke-out-over-relatively-minor-crisis-former-us-secretary-of-state-henry-kissinger-263637">Henry Kissinger</a>, said some US&nbsp;politicians have deliberately attacked and smeared China to push the two countries towards a path of confrontation. Such a conflict is not in the interests of either of the countries, he added.

"We want to work for a 'phase one' agreement on the basis of mutual respect and equality,"&nbsp;&nbsp;Xi Jinping told representatives of an international forum, Reuters reported.

Watch: China seeks sanctions on US at&nbsp;World Trade Organisation

&nbsp;

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&nbsp;

"When necessary, we will fight back, but we have been working actively to try not to have a trade war. We did not initiate this trade war and this is not something we want", Jinping added.

Yesterday, former US secretary of state&nbsp;Henry Kissinger&nbsp;warned that an armed conflict could break out between the United States and China if they fail to resolve their trade war.

Earlier, China said that it is willing to work with the United States to resolve each other's core concerns on the basis of equality and mutual respect, and will try hard to reach a "phase one" deal.&nbsp;

Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said on Friday the United States should meet China halfway and promote the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations, as the countries continue to clash on multiple fronts including trade and the South China Sea.

Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said on Friday the United States should meet China halfway and promote the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations, as the countries continue to clash on multiple fronts including trade and the South China Sea. Wang, during a meeting with former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, said some US politicians have deliberately attacked and smeared China to push the two countries towards a path of confrontation. Such a conflict is not in the interests of either of the countries, he added. "We want to work for a 'phase one' agreement on the basis of mutual respect and equality," Xi Jinping told representatives of an international forum, Reuters reported. Watch: China seeks sanctions on US at World Trade Organisation "When necessary, we will fight back, but we have been working actively to try not to have a trade war. We did not initiate this trade war and this is not something we want", Jinping added. Yesterday, former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger warned that an armed conflict could break out between the United States and China if they fail to resolve their trade war. Earlier, China said that it is willing to work with the United States to resolve each other's core concerns on the basis of equality and mutual respect, and will try hard to reach a "phase one" deal.

Senior China diplomat urges US to meet Beijing halfway, improve relations

Former US secretary of state <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/us-india-best-situated-to-grow-together-on-strategic-issues-says-henry-kissinger-257400">Henry Kissinger </a>warned Thursday that an armed conflict could break out between the United States and China if they fail to resolve their trade war.

The sober remarks from Kissinger, who was instrumental in normalising diplomatic relations between Washington and Beijing, came at a conference in Beijing on the future of the two economic giants.

"If a conflict is permitted to run unconstrained, the outcome could be even worse than it was in Europe," he said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum.

"World War I broke out because of a relatively minor crisis ... and today the weapons are more powerful," the former top diplomat said.

China and the US have been caught in a trade dispute for 18 months, with the two sides struggling to reach an agreement despite a series of negotiations.

Tensions have also been running high on the diplomatic front.

Beijing has lashed out at Washington over US naval operations in the disputed South China Sea, US criticism of China's mass detention of ethnic Uighurs and US Congress support for pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong.

"China is a major economic country. And so are we," Kissinger said. "And so we are bound to step on each other's toes all over the world."

The 96-year-old said that during the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, a plan to reduce the nuclear capacity of both countries was a top priority.

But because conflicts between the US and China have always been "passive", he warned there is no framework for Washington to deal with Beijing as a "military power".

If the two sides keep seeing "every issue in the world in terms of conflict" with each other, it could be "dangerous for mankind", he said.

Kissinger said the trade negotiations were just a "substitute" for more substantial talks about conflicts between the two, including tensions over Hong Kong.

When asked if unrest in the semi-autonomous region of China could be the "flashpoint" for a new Cold War, Kissinger said he hoped the "highly emotional" issue would be "settled by negotiations."

'Wrong direction'

Former President Richard Nixon's secretary of state flew secretly to Beijing in 1971 to begin talks on new relations between the US and Communist China.

Kissinger still has the ear of top Chinese officials, who give him the red carpet treatment when he visits Beijing.&nbsp;

He held a meeting with President Xi Jinping in the Chinese capital in November last year.

In a later session at the forum, former US treasury secretary Henry Paulson said he believed the US and China "are now headed in precisely the wrong direction."

He warned of growing barriers on visas and the movement of people, restrictions on trade and technology, and that the ongoing economic tensions would "leave our countries and the entire world worse off."

"When the next crisis comes, and it will come because financial crises do come, we will regret it big time if the world's two biggest economies do not have the mechanisms to cooperate," said Paulson, who was treasury secretary under former President George W Bush.

Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger warned Thursday that an armed conflict could break out between the United States and China if they fail to resolve their trade war.

Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger warned Thursday that an armed conflict could break out between the United States and China if they fail to resolve their trade war. The sober remarks from Kissinger, who was instrumental in normalising diplomatic relations between Washington and Beijing, came at a conference in Beijing on the future of the two economic giants. "If a conflict is permitted to run unconstrained, the outcome could be even worse than it was in Europe," he said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum. "World War I broke out because of a relatively minor crisis ... and today the weapons are more powerful," the former top diplomat said. China and the US have been caught in a trade dispute for 18 months, with the two sides struggling to reach an agreement despite a series of negotiations. Tensions have also been running high on the diplomatic front. Beijing has lashed out at Washington over US naval operations in the disputed South China Sea, US criticism of China's mass detention of ethnic Uighurs and US Congress support for pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. "China is a major economic country. And so are we," Kissinger said. "And so we are bound to step on each other's toes all over the world." The 96-year-old said that during the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, a plan to reduce the nuclear capacity of both countries was a top priority. But because conflicts between the US and China have always been "passive", he warned there is no framework for Washington to deal with Beijing as a "military power". If the two sides keep seeing "every issue in the world in terms of conflict" with each other, it could be "dangerous for mankind", he said. Kissinger said the trade negotiations were just a "substitute" for more substantial talks about conflicts between the two, including tensions over Hong Kong. When asked if unrest in the semi-autonomous region of China could be the "flashpoint" for a new Cold War, Kissinger said he hoped the "highly emotional" issue would be "settled by negotiations." 'Wrong direction' Former President Richard Nixon's secretary of state flew secretly to Beijing in 1971 to begin talks on new relations between the US and Communist China. Kissinger still has the ear of top Chinese officials, who give him the red carpet treatment when he visits Beijing. He held a meeting with President Xi Jinping in the Chinese capital in November last year. In a later session at the forum, former US treasury secretary Henry Paulson said he believed the US and China "are now headed in precisely the wrong direction." He warned of growing barriers on visas and the movement of people, restrictions on trade and technology, and that the ongoing economic tensions would "leave our countries and the entire world worse off." "When the next crisis comes, and it will come because financial crises do come, we will regret it big time if the world's two biggest economies do not have the mechanisms to cooperate," said Paulson, who was treasury secretary under former President George W Bush.

US-China trade dispute could spark a real war, World War I broke out over relatively minor crisis: Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger

Former US Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger on Monday said that the United States and India are best suited to grow together on strategic issues like security and economic evolution.

"If you look at the world, there are upheavals in almost every part of the world and that you cannot necessarily develop a general concept for each of them but you can work together on the essentials of peace and progress. Then I would say no two countries now are better situated to evolve their friendship," Kissinger said while talking about India-US relationship at an event in New Delhi.

He also asserted that the roots of the present phase of the relationship between the two countries are in the post-Bangladesh crisis phase.

"The present phase of Indian-American relations began after the Bangladesh crisis because we were both pushed to the edge of confrontations by a circumstance beyond our immediate issues", he said.

Speaking further he added, "We came through this (Bangladesh) crisis from the opposite point of view but with the conviction that only fundamental evolution would follow (that) India and the United States could develop parallel approach and over the years, we have now reached a situation where India and the US, on many of these issues, on most of these key issues have parallel objectives."

"On the key issues of security and economic evolution of the world we have reached to discussions that enable us to act as a kind of partners without any formal arrangement", former NSA of United States said.

Kissinger made these statements at the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum held during the second Annual India Leadership Summit here

During the event, Kissinger also shared his wisdom on the art of negotiations stating that the real essence of a negotiation is to achieve a win-win situation.

Former US Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger on Monday said that the United States and India are best suited to grow together on strategic issues like security and economic evolution.

Former US Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger on Monday said that the United States and India are best suited to grow together on strategic issues like security and economic evolution. "If you look at the world, there are upheavals in almost every part of the world and that you cannot necessarily develop a general concept for each of them but you can work together on the essentials of peace and progress. Then I would say no two countries now are better situated to evolve their friendship," Kissinger said while talking about India-US relationship at an event in New Delhi. He also asserted that the roots of the present phase of the relationship between the two countries are in the post-Bangladesh crisis phase. "The present phase of Indian-American relations began after the Bangladesh crisis because we were both pushed to the edge of confrontations by a circumstance beyond our immediate issues", he said. Speaking further he added, "We came through this (Bangladesh) crisis from the opposite point of view but with the conviction that only fundamental evolution would follow (that) India and the United States could develop parallel approach and over the years, we have now reached a situation where India and the US, on many of these issues, on most of these key issues have parallel objectives." "On the key issues of security and economic evolution of the world we have reached to discussions that enable us to act as a kind of partners without any formal arrangement", former NSA of United States said. Kissinger made these statements at the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum held during the second Annual India Leadership Summit here During the event, Kissinger also shared his wisdom on the art of negotiations stating that the real essence of a negotiation is to achieve a win-win situation.

US, India best situated to grow together on strategic issues, says Henry Kissinger

&nbsp;The Andes Mountains are the longest mountain range in the world, dominating South America.&nbsp;They continue north through Central America and Mexico to become the Rocky Mountains of the United States and Canada.&nbsp;In South America, the Andes has numerous peaks over 5,000 meters, so it is quite a formidable range.&nbsp;The Republic of Chile is a narrow strip of land from the Andes to the Pacific Ocean, 4,270 km in length but with an average width of only 177 km and relatively isolated from its neighbours by the towering mountains to the east, the dry Atacama desert in the north, and the waters of the Pacific to the south and west.

Because of its unique geography, the territory was sparsely settled before Spanish conquest and colonisation, so that today the population is as much European as indigenous in origin. Copper mining has been a mainstay of the economy and in 1905 the US-owned Anaconda Copper Company came to control most of the production, so that through the course of the 20th century, copper provided the bulk of Chile&rsquo;s exports and Anaconda Copper dominated economy and politics.

&nbsp;With booming copper exports and a relatively small population, Chile enjoyed a generally higher standard of living than its neighbours but still suffered from underdevelopment, lack of industrialisation, low wages, mass poverty, and extreme inequality of wealth and power.&nbsp; A small, mostly white oligarchy retained control of politics.&nbsp;Following a military coup in 1924 and a subsequent return to democracy, Leftist political parties slowly became more popular, in large part influenced by radicalised copper miners and their increasingly militant trade unions.&nbsp;In 1970, a coalition of the Socialist and Communist parties elected Dr Salvador Allende, a physician, to the presidency.

&nbsp;I started graduate study in history at UCLA that same year, with a concentration in Latin American labour history.&nbsp;I passed my Ph.D. exams in May 1973 with a dissertation project on Chile because it seemed to have the most successful labour movement in Latin America, one that had brought a socialist into the presidency.&nbsp; I received a Doherty fellowship to go to Chile for a year for archival research towards the dissertation and arrived in Santiago, the capital, in late August 1973.&nbsp; I had taught myself to read Spanish in graduate school but could hardly speak anything except the rudiments, and certainly didn&rsquo;t know a single person in the country when I arrived.

&nbsp;On the morning of September 11, 1973, I left my apartment and headed downtown for the National Archives, where I was beginning my research on the origins of the Chilean labour movement.&nbsp;On the walk there, I noticed many military tanks on the streets and when I reached the Archives, located across the street from the National Palace, I found it closed for reasons I didn&rsquo;t understand at the moment. &nbsp;

Suddenly, all hell broke loose as the tanks I had seen earlier opened fire on the Palace where President Allende was, military jets flew overhead, and with militants trying to defend the president, the area turned into a war zone.&nbsp; I dived under a car parked on the street in front of the Archives to avoid getting shot, then realised if I stayed there, I&rsquo;d probably die, so I took off running.&nbsp; &nbsp;

A full-scale civil war was under way, bullets and rockets were flying about, people all around me were dropping, and it was just random who lived and who died.&nbsp; I made it out of the fire zone and back to my apartment, where my neighbour told me that there was a military coup underway.&nbsp;

&nbsp;I was probably the only person in the entire country unaware of the coup that morning as I had no radio, no television, no friends, hardly any acquaintances.&nbsp; With the news of the military uprising, which I had just witnessed minutes earlier, I was scared and didn&rsquo;t know what to do, so I went to the apartment of an American graduate student I had met in the archives. He spoke English and had been in the country for a year, so I thought I might get some advice. &nbsp;

He told me that there was a 24-hour military curfew, which meant that I was trapped at his place for the time being.&nbsp; And there I was when a few days later there was a loud knock on the door followed by dozens of soldiers pouring into his apartment.&nbsp;They grabbed us, dragged us out to the courtyard of the apartment complex, and immediately began to beat us, stomp on us, cut us with bayonets, pound us with rifle butts, threaten us with machine&nbsp;guns in the ear, occasionally stopping to ask questions.&nbsp; Of course, with my meager Spanish and scared to death, I couldn&rsquo;t understand anything, but they interpreted my silence as resistance and redoubled the beatings. &nbsp;

After some hours of this, they dragged us off to a prisoner bus parked nearby which they were filling with folks mostly in the same condition as us. &nbsp;Just before the bus took off, an officer came up to the two American prisoners, handed us our American passports that they had discovered in the process of tearing up my friend&rsquo;s apartment, apologised and said we could go.&nbsp; From the looks of it, since we were not permitted to talk with the other prisoners, we were the only Americans on the bus, the rest apparently Chileans or Latin Americans.&nbsp; The bus left and to the best of my knowledge, my fellow prisoners were taken off to torture and death.&nbsp;If I had to guess, they didn&rsquo;t want to kill US citizens.

&nbsp;A few days later, the curfew lifted and I went to the U.S. embassy, which then put me on the first embassy-arranged flight out of Chile, a shaky DC-4 flying over the towering Andes to safety in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where after a week in a seedy hotel and without money, I was able to get a flight back to Los Angeles.&nbsp; The torture had taken its toll, I suffered internal injuries and bleeding and needed time to heal, along with the psychological scars.&nbsp; After a couple of months, I regained my health, still needed to write a dissertation and had not spent much of the fellowship money in Chile, so in December I went to Mexico City to see if I could figure out a topic on a country I had never studied and about which I knew nothing.

At the time of the coup and for some time after that, I didn&rsquo;t really understand what had happened in Chile except the basics.&nbsp;The Chilean oligarchy had aligned with the armed forces to tear down, smash democracy and terrorise the civilian population through mass torture and mass murder.&nbsp; Over time, reports began to filter in about U.S. participation in destroying Chile&rsquo;s Constitutional government and the extent and depth of the torture regime that the leader of the coup, General Augusto Pinochet, implemented. &nbsp;

Some years later, in 2007, Naomi Klein published The Shock Doctrine, The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, a brilliant volume that for me was an eye opener.&nbsp;It explained how the U.S. orchestrated the rise of neoliberalism and austerity programmes via military coups throughout Latin America:&nbsp;Argentina (1976), Brazil (1964), Chile (1973), and Uruguay (1973), along with similar actions around the world. However,&nbsp;I was most interested in the chapter on Chile, the details of which both explained the coup and brought back the horror I had experienced. &nbsp;

Torture was only a tool to subdue the local population, to allow such neoliberal policies as breaking the unions, imposing austerity, carrying out free market reforms which inevitably punished the poor.&nbsp; With U.S. planning and support, the new military governments freely employed torture, murder, and repression as methods to achieve unpopular economic policies.&nbsp; The books strikingly emphasised the role of then U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in working with Pinochet to organise the coup.&nbsp; It is a powerful book and given what I lived through, accurate in its account.

&nbsp;Pinochet remained in power until 1990, and though the country eventually returned to democracy, the Socialists, Communists, and trade unions never recovered their influence. Too many people had been tortured and killed.&nbsp; Personally, I had no interest in going back, had fallen in love with Mexico, where I lived and ended up teaching at the university until 1984, when I returned to the U.S. with my Mexican wife. &nbsp;

Chile had taught me that, however, old a democracy may be, when the rich and powerful feel threatened, they will act.&nbsp; It won&rsquo;t be peaceful and it won&rsquo;t be nice. Growing up in the United States simply had not prepared me for the world outside. As it turns out, according to the Shock Doctrine, for the machinations of a government that I thought I knew, but in truth, did not know at all.

The coup in Chile taught me that, however, old a democracy may be, when the rich and powerful feel threatened, they will act.

The Andes Mountains are the longest mountain range in the world, dominating South America. They continue north through Central America and Mexico to become the Rocky Mountains of the United States and Canada. In South America, the Andes has numerous peaks over 5,000 meters, so it is quite a formidable range. The Republic of Chile is a narrow strip of land from the Andes to the Pacific Ocean, 4,270 km in length but with an average width of only 177 km and relatively isolated from its neighbours by the towering mountains to the east, the dry Atacama desert in the north, and the waters of the Pacific to the south and west. Because of its unique geography, the territory was sparsely settled before Spanish conquest and colonisation, so that today the population is as much European as indigenous in origin. Copper mining has been a mainstay of the economy and in 1905 the US-owned Anaconda Copper Company came to control most of the production, so that through the course of the 20th century, copper provided the bulk of Chile’s exports and Anaconda Copper dominated economy and politics. With booming copper exports and a relatively small population, Chile enjoyed a generally higher standard of living than its neighbours but still suffered from underdevelopment, lack of industrialisation, low wages, mass poverty, and extreme inequality of wealth and power. A small, mostly white oligarchy retained control of politics. Following a military coup in 1924 and a subsequent return to democracy, Leftist political parties slowly became more popular, in large part influenced by radicalised copper miners and their increasingly militant trade unions. In 1970, a coalition of the Socialist and Communist parties elected Dr Salvador Allende, a physician, to the presidency. I started graduate study in history at UCLA that same year, with a concentration in Latin American labour history. I passed my Ph.D. exams in May 1973 with a dissertation project on Chile because it seemed to have the most successful labour movement in Latin America, one that had brought a socialist into the presidency. I received a Doherty fellowship to go to Chile for a year for archival research towards the dissertation and arrived in Santiago, the capital, in late August 1973. I had taught myself to read Spanish in graduate school but could hardly speak anything except the rudiments, and certainly didn’t know a single person in the country when I arrived. On the morning of September 11, 1973, I left my apartment and headed downtown for the National Archives, where I was beginning my research on the origins of the Chilean labour movement. On the walk there, I noticed many military tanks on the streets and when I reached the Archives, located across the street from the National Palace, I found it closed for reasons I didn’t understand at the moment. Suddenly, all hell broke loose as the tanks I had seen earlier opened fire on the Palace where President Allende was, military jets flew overhead, and with militants trying to defend the president, the area turned into a war zone. I dived under a car parked on the street in front of the Archives to avoid getting shot, then realised if I stayed there, I’d probably die, so I took off running. A full-scale civil war was under way, bullets and rockets were flying about, people all around me were dropping, and it was just random who lived and who died. I made it out of the fire zone and back to my apartment, where my neighbour told me that there was a military coup underway. I was probably the only person in the entire country unaware of the coup that morning as I had no radio, no television, no friends, hardly any acquaintances. With the news of the military uprising, which I had just witnessed minutes earlier, I was scared and didn’t know what to do, so I went to the apartment of an American graduate student I had met in the archives. He spoke English and had been in the country for a year, so I thought I might get some advice. He told me that there was a 24-hour military curfew, which meant that I was trapped at his place for the time being. And there I was when a few days later there was a loud knock on the door followed by dozens of soldiers pouring into his apartment. They grabbed us, dragged us out to the courtyard of the apartment complex, and immediately began to beat us, stomp on us, cut us with bayonets, pound us with rifle butts, threaten us with machine guns in the ear, occasionally stopping to ask questions. Of course, with my meager Spanish and scared to death, I couldn’t understand anything, but they interpreted my silence as resistance and redoubled the beatings. After some hours of this, they dragged us off to a prisoner bus parked nearby which they were filling with folks mostly in the same condition as us. Just before the bus took off, an officer came up to the two American prisoners, handed us our American passports that they had discovered in the process of tearing up my friend’s apartment, apologised and said we could go. From the looks of it, since we were not permitted to talk with the other prisoners, we were the only Americans on the bus, the rest apparently Chileans or Latin Americans. The bus left and to the best of my knowledge, my fellow prisoners were taken off to torture and death. If I had to guess, they didn’t want to kill US citizens. A few days later, the curfew lifted and I went to the U.S. embassy, which then put me on the first embassy-arranged flight out of Chile, a shaky DC-4 flying over the towering Andes to safety in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where after a week in a seedy hotel and without money, I was able to get a flight back to Los Angeles. The torture had taken its toll, I suffered internal injuries and bleeding and needed time to heal, along with the psychological scars. After a couple of months, I regained my health, still needed to write a dissertation and had not spent much of the fellowship money in Chile, so in December I went to Mexico City to see if I could figure out a topic on a country I had never studied and about which I knew nothing. At the time of the coup and for some time after that, I didn’t really understand what had happened in Chile except the basics. The Chilean oligarchy had aligned with the armed forces to tear down, smash democracy and terrorise the civilian population through mass torture and mass murder. Over time, reports began to filter in about U.S. participation in destroying Chile’s Constitutional government and the extent and depth of the torture regime that the leader of the coup, General Augusto Pinochet, implemented. Some years later, in 2007, Naomi Klein published The Shock Doctrine, The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, a brilliant volume that for me was an eye opener. It explained how the U.S. orchestrated the rise of neoliberalism and austerity programmes via military coups throughout Latin America: Argentina (1976), Brazil (1964), Chile (1973), and Uruguay (1973), along with similar actions around the world. However, I was most interested in the chapter on Chile, the details of which both explained the coup and brought back the horror I had experienced. Torture was only a tool to subdue the local population, to allow such neoliberal policies as breaking the unions, imposing austerity, carrying out free market reforms which inevitably punished the poor. With U.S. planning and support, the new military governments freely employed torture, murder, and repression as methods to achieve unpopular economic policies. The books strikingly emphasised the role of then U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in working with Pinochet to organise the coup. It is a powerful book and given what I lived through, accurate in its account. Pinochet remained in power until 1990, and though the country eventually returned to democracy, the Socialists, Communists, and trade unions never recovered their influence. Too many people had been tortured and killed. Personally, I had no interest in going back, had fallen in love with Mexico, where I lived and ended up teaching at the university until 1984, when I returned to the U.S. with my Mexican wife. Chile had taught me that, however, old a democracy may be, when the rich and powerful feel threatened, they will act. It won’t be peaceful and it won’t be nice. Growing up in the United States simply had not prepared me for the world outside. As it turns out, according to the Shock Doctrine, for the machinations of a government that I thought I knew, but in truth, did not know at all.

September 11 in Chile: A personal account of torture and mass murder

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