Feng Ju: Why is Kissinger getting so much attention?

On 29 November local time, former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger passed away at the age of 100. Kissinger's life is legendary, his name can be listed before a long list of definitions: realism everyone, the greatest Secretary of State in U.S. history, and the Chinese people's old friend, all because he was the 'maker' of a long-lasting peace, stability, prosperity and global order era.

In 2017, Dr Kissinger, former US Secretary of State, attended and addressed the US-China University Presidents and Think Tanks Forum in New York. Kissinger stressed that the US and China have no choice but to cooperate. Credit: Ocean Diao.

The man has passed away, but his legacy still exists. Feng Zhu, a guest expert of the Centre for Strategic and Security Studies at Tsinghua University and Executive Dean of the School of International Relations at Nanjing University, who had met Dr. Kissinger several times, was interviewed by East Meets West, recalling his personality, his deeds and his studies.

Feng Zhu is the Executive Director of the Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Study of the South China Sea at Nanjing University, the Executive Dean of the School of International Relations at Nanjing University, a contributing expert at the Centre for Strategic and Security Studies at Tsinghua University, and a contributing expert at the China Forum. He was formerly the deputy director of the Institute of International Strategic Studies at Peking University and a professor at the School of International Relations at Peking University. Professor Zhu is currently also Vice President of the China Society of International Relations and Vice President of the China-Japan Society. He has served as a visiting scholar at the Brookings Institution, the Fitzherbert Research Centre of Harvard University, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Tulane University, and the University of Wellington, New Zealand, among other internationally renowned academic institutions. His representative academic monographs include America, China and the Struggle for the World Order (co-author, USA: MacMillan Publishing House, 2015), etc.

You have had face-to-face interaction with Kissinger, what does Kissinger look like to you?

During my study visits and academic exchanges in the United States, I had several encounters with Kissinger at international academic forums and had discussions with him on issues such as U.S. foreign policy and U.S.-China relations. Kissinger is an outstanding diplomat and statesman who has played a very important role in the fields of nuclear deterrence and international security, the Cold War era of U.S.-Soviet rivalry, and U.S. security strategy in the post-Cold War era. He served as National Security Assistant in the Nixon Administration from 1969 to 1974 and as U.S. Secretary of State from 1973 to 1977, during which time he completed negotiations to end the Vietnam War, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Kissinger was an even better scholar of international issues, writing continuously since he ceased to hold governmental office, especially in his last 30 years. It is very rare for a person to do all three jobs so well.

On 24 October 2023, the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUR) held its annual awards dinner in New York, U.S.A. The NCUR presented an award to former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger for his outstanding contributions to the promotion of U.S.-China relations. The picture shows former US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner congratulating Dr Kissinger (right) on the award. Credit: Pan Liao.

Why does the eulogy posted on the official website of Kissinger Associates refer to him as "the 'maker' of a long-lasting peace, stability, prosperity and global order era"?

Kissinger left the Harvard campus in 1969 and moved from academia to politics. At a time when the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union was reaching its peak, and the development of the nuclear forces of both sides had reached the point of "assured mutual destruction", Kissinger contributed to the improvement of the relations with China, and thus changed the international strategic power pattern, forming a new "balance of power".

To a large extent he was also the man who ended the Vietnam War. He believes that the United States cannot afford to get too caught up in the East Asian situation.

In the 1970s, he was more active in the nuclear arms control negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union, stressing the need for strategic stability between the two superpowers. He was also a "cracker", "promoter" and "facilitator" in breaking the ice of the 23-year confrontation between China and the U.S. After the 1990s, when the world entered the post-Cold War era, he was an in-depth thinker on China-U.S. relations, and clearly advocated the "China-United States relationship" in the face of various challenges.

Overall, the initial development of Kissinger's scholarly career and his work as a diplomat, assistant for national security affairs, and secretary of state were basically during the Cold War period, and some of his strategic ideas and specific policies made important contributions to maintaining peace, stability, and prosperity on a global scale.

On 24 October 2023, the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUR) held its annual awards dinner in New York, U.S.A. The NCUR presented an award to former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger for his outstanding contributions to the development of U.S.-China relations. The picture shows the crowd congratulating Dr Kissinger (second from left) on the award. Credit: Pan Liao.

What is the key to understanding Kissinger's academic thought and strategic policy?

Kissinger's main academic ideas took shape in the 1950s and 1970s. At that time, for the first time in history, the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, formed a "nuclear equilibrium" and "nuclear terror", and the confrontation between the two camps was expanding. His first monograph was Nuclear Weapons and Foreign Policy, which proposed that the United States and the Soviet Union should maintain a limited conflict. So he contributed a lot to the balance of power and relative stability in the Cold War era.

In terms of ideological basis, he is a typical scholar of the realist school of thought, stressing "interests" and "strengths", attaching less importance to the role and influence of ideology, and stressing the need to transcend ideology in order to find a differentiated combination of forces. Therefore, he is committed to promoting China-US relations. As a realist theoretical master, he has been to China many times, knows the Chinese Communist Party better, and has no great prejudice against China. In recent years, he has repeatedly stressed the importance of controlling Sino-US relations and not letting them fall into an abyss and conflict, not to mention a full-scale confrontation.

I have had many exchanges with Dr Kissinger. Whether in academia or in life, he is very gentle but very persistent in his thoughts and views. In the post-Cold War era, the US foreign policy has become more "liberal internationalist" and wants to export human rights values, but Kissinger still maintains the observations of the realist school, and does not particularly agree with the US's over-emphasis on ideological confrontation. As a result, his influence in American academia today is not the same as it was during the Cold War.

In 2007, former US Secretary of State Kissinger, who was visiting Beijing, attended the "China Science and Humanities Forum" and gave a speech on "The US-China Relationship and Its Future as I Witnessed It" and answered questions from students. Credit: Xiyi Xu.

Why do we pay this much of attention to Kissinger in China?

Kissinger has played an important role in China-United States relations. During the Cold War, he was a "cracker", "pusher" and "facilitator". Today, as a calm "thinker", he still plays an important role in promoting and facilitating.

People's nostalgia for Kissinger actually reflects the importance they attach to China-United States relations. The most important thing is to learn from history and look to the future and to inherit and carry forward Kissinger's strategic vision, political courage and diplomatic wisdom.

In 2006, Professor Kissinger, former US Secretary of State, visited Peking University again to participate in the ceremony of conferring an honorary doctorate on him. Credit: Xin Feng.

People may worry whether the passing of such a heavyweight strategist and policymaking adviser will lead to changes in the United States policy towards China. Indeed. How China and the United States can transcend differences in ideology and political systems, and truly place the interests of the peoples and the interests of world development at the forefront, remains a question that must be answered.

"The times make the hero", and anyone is a product of a particular historical environment. Today's Sino-American relations have undergone tremendous changes, and stability and development are very important in the future. As we commemorate Kissinger and remember him, we should continue to draw sustenance from his thoughts and look ahead. At least, I believe that Kissinger's thoughts and wisdom, his influence will not end with his passing.

Kissinger is very well known as a China expert and published On China at the age of 88, how do you rate the book?

Cover of Kissinger's book On China. Credit: Longjie Wen.

I have read this book many times and it is very informative, reflecting the knowledge of the older generation of American scholars about China. During his tenure as a diplomat, he had contact with the older generation of Chinese political leaders such as Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai and Deng Xiaoping, and Kissinger has met several generations of Chinese leaders since then. In his book, he talks about his impressions of Chinese political leaders and how impressed he was to see the continuation of the Chinese spirit and national self-reliance. As a senior diplomat, the height and depth of his engagement with China is not comparable to that of the average American. Due to the lack of such experience, many Americans do not understand China and only apply some inherent concepts to judge China.

In the future, it may be difficult for anyone else to communicate with China's leaders at such a depth and height. In this sense, an era has passed.