Veteran American diplomat Henry Kissinger has died

"According to reports, Henry Kissinger, the controversial winner of the Nobel Peace Prize and a seasoned American diplomat who served during the presidencies of two U.S. presidents, passed away on Thursday at his home in Connecticut at the age of 100.

Kissinger remained active even at the age of 100, participating in White House sessions, publishing a book on leadership styles, and testifying before the Senate Committee on the nuclear threat from North Korea. In July 2023, he unexpectedly traveled to Beijing to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

During his tenure as Secretary of State under President Richard Nixon, Kissinger played a role in many global events of the 1970s. His actions, a Jewish refugee of German origin, led to the diplomatic opening with China, crucial arms control negotiations between the United States and the Soviet Union, the expansion of relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors, and the Paris Peace Accords with North Vietnam.

Kissinger's influence as the primary architect of U.S. foreign policy diminished with Nixon's resignation in 1974. While many admired Kissinger for his brilliance and extensive experience, others considered him a war criminal for his support of anti-communist dictatorships, especially in Latin America.

His Peace Prize in 1973, shared with Le Duc Tho from North Vietnam, who rejected it, became one of the most controversial in history. Two Nobel Committee members resigned due to this choice, and questions arose about the covert U.S. bombing in Cambodia.

Henry Alfred Kissinger was born on May 27, 1923, in Fürth, Germany, and moved to the United States with his family in 1938 before the Nazis' persecution of European Jews. Kissinger obtained U.S. citizenship in 1943, served in the army during World War II, attended Harvard University on a scholarship, and earned his master's degree in 1952 and Ph.D. in 1954.

In 1973, Kissinger, in addition to his role as National Security Advisor, was appointed Secretary of State, gaining unparalleled power in foreign affairs.

After leaving the government, he founded a consulting firm in New York, providing advice to celebrities and major global companies. He served on the boards of various foreign policy and security-related companies and organizations, wrote books, and became a media commentator on international affairs.

Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, then-President George W. Bush selected Kissinger to chair the investigation committee, but due to Democratic protests, Kissinger resigned from the position.

In 1964, he divorced his first wife, Ann Fleisher, and in 1974, he married Nancy Maginnes, the assistant to the Governor of New York, Nelson Rockefeller. He had two children with his first wife."

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