Kissinger, Henry. World
Order, Penguin Press, New York, 2014. (Hardcover, pages 420)
Rating: 6.5/10
As a man in his nineties, with
diplomacy as his favorite sport, a Nobel peace prize winner, someone who has hobnobbed
with most presidents and prime ministers of his time, a rare politician who
excelled in academics and is the author of more than twenty books, Henry
Kissinger is well qualified to give the readers a history lesson with a
different perspective - the history of the World Order.
Kissinger says there has never
been a true "world order." China constructed a global cultural
hierarchy with the Chinese emperor at its pinnacle. After the fragmentation of
Rome, Europeans refined the concept of Sovereign States. Islam considered
itself the sole legitimate political unit, aiming to bring the entire world to
adopt its religious principles. The USA was born with the conviction about the
universal applicability of the principles of democracy and freedom.
Just like people, nations rarely
change. If countries like England, France, Germany, China or Russia were personified;
from Henry Kissinger's book it becomes evident that in the last five hundred
years or so, each of these personae has retained its core values and behavior. England,
for example, waited behind the channel for Napoleon and a century and a half
later for Hitler, to make a mistake that would enable it to reappear on the
continent militarily. In World War II, Britain was also waiting for the United
States to enter the lists. (Page 46) Germany, Kissinger says, has for much of
history been either too weak or too strong for the peace of Europe. (Page 64) Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014 may
appear shocking, but in 1783, the Russian empire had annexed it, and fought a
major Crimean War between 1853 and 1856.
But such insights are few.
World Order is essentially a history book that could have been written by any
historian. The reader will get impressed in inverse proportion to his knowledge
of the world history. What is more disappointing is how rarely Kissinger tells
us his personal experiences or anecdotes. I could count not more than ten, and
most of them were superficial. For those readers who value personal experiences
from such author, I offer the page numbers. pages
170/ 222/223/224/ 281/289/304-5/ 313/ 324-25/ 334. This will save you time in
case that is all that you wish to read.
The book has some excellent
quotations:
Page 14) Holy Roman empire was
neither Holy, nor Roman, nor an empire. - Voltaire
27) We have no eternal allies,
and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and
those interests it is our duty to follow. - 19th century British Statesman Lord
Palmerston.
54) Russia: European
discipline supporting the tyranny of Asia. - Marquis de Custine.
253) Speak softly and carry a
big stick. - Theodore Roosevelt
270) The only way to have a
friend is to be one.- Emerson
279) America has Universal
principles, while other countries merely has national interests. - every US
president.
307) You pay the same price
for doing something halfway as for doing it completely. So you might as well as
do it completely. - Richard Nixon.
A chapter on technology
(Technology, Equilibrium and Human Consciousness) is a surprise. It may seem
out of place in this book. But Henry Kissinger attempts to look at the future
world order and the role of technology in it. He describes how technology
weakens the distinction between information, knowledge and wisdom. From this
book, the reader gains much information and knowledge but little wisdom.
What is even more
disappointing, I should say frustrating or infuriating, is Kissinger's
hypocrisy in the chapter on Saudi Arabia. (Pages 134-141)
On page 324, Kissinger proudly
talks of his supporting the decision to undertake the regime change in Iraq.
One reason offered is that no political opposition was permitted in Iraq by the
ruling Baath party. Kissinger then adds: In the long run, stability cannot
be purchased at the expense of liberty.
The same author, when talking
about Saudi Arabia, though is almost apologetic. He comes across as defending
the Saudi state. Saudi Arabia's conservatism and practices border on evil if
not downright evil, it doesn't allow any opposition party either, it prohibits women
from working. Why does stability matter so much and liberty so less when
Kissinger talks about Saudi Arabia? If at the age of 92, he can't talk his mind
openly, when does he plan to do so? This hypocrisy is the biggest blemish on
this otherwise good book by one of the most seasoned politicians in the world.
Verdict: If you haven't read many books that blend
history and politics, World Order is an interesting book. Henry Kissinger, the academician rather than
diplomat, has written it. Kissinger, the diplomat, has simply ensured the loss
of objectivity in some places.
