Former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger died on Wednesday at his home in Connecticut at the age of 100, as reported by news agency Reuters. Kissinger was America's top diplomat and national security adviser during the Nixon and Ford administrations.
Kissinger was active past his centenary. He was attending meetings in the White House, publishing a book on leadership styles, and testifying before a Senate committee about the nuclear threat posed by North Korea. In July 2023, Kissinger made a surprise visit to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping.
In the 1970s, while serving as secretary of state under Republican President Richard Nixon, Kissinger had a hand in many of the epoch-changing global events of the decade, as reported by Reuters.
Kissinger’s efforts resulted in the diplomatic opening of China, landmark U.S.-Soviet arms control talks, expanded ties between Israel and its Arab neighbours, and the Paris Peace Accords with North Vietnam.
Born in Furth, Germany, on May 27, 1923, Heinz Kissinger moved to the United States with his family in 1938. Heinz Alfred Kissinger anglicised his name to Henry Kissinger and became a naturalised U.S. citizen in 1943, as reported by Reuters. He served in the Army in Europe in World War II and went to Harvard University on scholarship. He earned a master's degree in 1952 and a doctorate in 1954. He was on Harvard's faculty for the next 17 years.
Kissinger Met PM Modi During US Visit
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in the US on an official state visit in June this year, Kissinger travelled to Washington to listen to the PM’s address at the luncheon at the State Department, jointly hosted by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
After Modi became the Prime Minister of India in 2014, Kissinger advocated strong ties with India, as reported by PTI. During the luncheon, the elderly American statesman patiently listened to the speech of the prime minister and had an interaction with him.