Better call Kissinger: an interview with the renowned diplomat
The Intelligence from The Economist
The Economist
4.5 • 3.7K Ratings
🗓️ 17 May 2023
⏱️ 30 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In a conversation that lasted eight hours over two days, the statesman discussed paths to peace in Ukraine, his evolving view on their NATO membership, and where China comes into play. Our crony-capitalism index is back, and the chart-topping culprits haven’t changed so much. And, the toymaker, Lego, is facing roadblocks in China.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello and welcome to the Intelligence from the Economist. I'm Jason Palmer. |
| 0:07.0 | And I'm Aura Agunbi. Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world. |
| 0:18.0 | For nearly a decade now our crony capitalism index has charted just how much wealth plutocrats can attribute to chummy relations with governments. |
| 0:26.0 | The latest index lays out how fast crony capital is rising and where. |
| 0:33.0 | And, like many Western brands, Lego is having to step carefully in the Chinese market. |
| 0:39.0 | The firm's offerings fit well with officials' wishes for nods to traditional culture and it's holding off its many homegrown Chinese rivals. Well, so far. |
| 0:50.0 | First up though. |
| 1:04.0 | Henry Kissinger is about to turn a hundred. He has been celebrated by many as America's definitive 20th century diplomat. |
| 1:14.0 | As national security adviser and later secretary of state, Mr Kissinger oversaw the reestablishment of a relationship with China and ease tensions with the Soviet Union, securing an arms control treaty. |
| 1:28.0 | His work negotiating America's withdrawal from Vietnam controversially earned him a Nobel Peace Prize. |
| 1:44.0 | An agreement is within sight. |
| 1:48.0 | He remains a polarizing man. Mr Kissinger has been associated with human rights abusers in Cambodia, Chile, Bangladesh and beyond. |
| 1:58.0 | After leaving office in 1977, he became a successful consultant and continued to influence global politics. |
| 2:07.0 | President's prime ministers and diplomats the world over still value his philosophy, his ideas and his advice. |
| 2:16.0 | He remains a remarkable and much remarked upon geopolitical leader. |
| 2:21.0 | With no sign of an end to the war in Ukraine and China posing an ever-growing threat, his thinking is as valuable as ever. |
| 2:31.0 | There are so many photographs in here, Dr Kissinger. |
| 2:34.0 | That is his president, president of a country here in this corner. |
| 2:41.0 | Bill Clinton, War of Reagan. |
| 2:44.0 | Zany Minton Beadows, the economist's editor-in-chief, met with Mr Kissinger at his office in New York. |
| 2:52.0 | For the best part of the century, Henry Kissinger has been thinking about how great powers interact and how to avoid war between them. |
| 2:59.0 | Well, I started thinking about this very early on in my life, probably when I was in military service during the war. |
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