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Henry Kissinger is dead. Good riddance. That this vile and despicable man lived to a hundred spits at the notion of karmic justice. That such a monster long outlived the mountains of children and innocents killed in Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, East Timor, Cyprus, Argentina, Bangladesh, and Chile is paradoxical because it makes one question the existence of a deity while simultaneously hoping one exists so they can punish this man for an eternity.
For those that don’t know, Kissinger, serving as National Security Advisor and later as Secretary of State under Presidents Nixon and Ford, played a pivotal role in shaping U.S. foreign policy during a tumultuous era marked by the Cold War and widespread anti-colonial movements. His influence extended across continents, leaving a legacy often marred by controversy and accusations of human rights violations.
In Southeast Asia, Kissinger’s involvement in the Vietnam War had profound and lasting consequences. His strategy of “Vietnamization,” aimed at reducing American ground involvement, paradoxically led to an escalation in aerial bombardments. In Laos, the U.S. dropped more than two million tons of ordnance in a covert operation aimed at disrupting the Ho Chi Minh trail, a supply route for North Vietnamese forces. The intense bombing, much of it greenlit by Kissinger, devastated the Laotian landscape and continues to claim lives due to unexploded ordnance. In Cambodia, U.S. bombing campaigns and political interference laid the groundwork for the rise of the Khmer Rouge, leading to one of the worst genocides of the 20th century. While Kissinger’s role was primarily in executing a broader policy, his influence in directing these operations was undeniable.
In East Timor, Kissinger’s legacy is similarly dark. In 1975, Indonesia, under President Suharto, invaded East Timor just hours after Kissinger and President Ford left Jakarta, where they had given Suharto an apparent green light for the invasion. The ensuing occupation resulted in the deaths of approximately a quarter of East Timor’s population. Declassified documents later revealed that the U.S., under Kissinger’s guidance, provided arms and tacit support to Indonesia, effectively enabling a humanitarian catastrophe.
Kissinger’s realpolitik also left its mark in South Asia. In 1971, during the Bangladesh Liberation War, the U.S., under Kissinger’s aegis, supported the Pakistani military regime despite widespread reports of genocide and atrocities committed in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). This stance was driven by the U.S.’s strategic interest in Pakistan, notably its role in brokering Nixon’s opening to China, a geopolitical maneuver masterminded by Kissinger.
In Latin America, Kissinger’s policies fostered an environment that allowed military dictatorships to flourish, often at the cost of human rights and democratic principles. In Chile, the U.S. actively supported the coup that overthrew the democratically elected President Salvador Allende in 1973. Declassified documents show that Kissinger played a key role in crafting the policy that led to the rise of General Augusto Pinochet, whose regime was responsible for widespread human rights abuses. Similarly, in Argentina, the U.S. under Kissinger supported a military junta known for its brutal “Dirty War” against political dissidents.
Kissinger’s involvement in Cyprus, where a coup d’état in 1974 led to a Turkish invasion, remains a subject of debate. Critics argue that Kissinger’s policies emboldened Turkish actions leading to a prolonged conflict and division of the island. His detractors claim that his realpolitik approach often sacrificed human rights for strategic gains.
The passing of Henry Kissinger reminds us of the complex and often dark chapters in global history he helped author. His approach to foreign policy, characterized by a pragmatic, sometimes ruthless prioritization of American strategic interests, often came at a high human cost. For the people of Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, East Timor, Cyprus, Argentina, Bangladesh, and Chile, his death reopens old wounds and brings a somber reflection on a past that continues to shape their present.
In these nations, Kissinger is remembered not as a celebrated statesman but as a symbol of foreign intervention that left deep scars on their societal fabric. That the west still celebrates him as a statesman says all one needs to know about the moral corruption still prevalent in many foreign affairs ministry and the state department.
May his memory be tarnished and his crimes always remembered.