Henry Kissinger died at 100 years old November 30. In an exclusive interview, he shared some of his views on the world and how he wants to be remembered.
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00:00 How I live to be 100, I don't know.
00:05 I didn't aim for it.
00:09 - But you're still enjoying it.
00:12 - You know, when you reach my age,
00:15 a certain serenity descends on you
00:20 because you can have no ambitions for the future.
00:27 So you have to do the right thing
00:32 'cause you can damage yourself very much.
00:37 - You became famous as a politician
00:39 for the idea of realpolitik.
00:41 That's a very pragmatic approach of politics.
00:44 - I'm an idealist who believes, however,
00:52 that ideals have to be related to practical possibilities
00:57 or that practical actions have to be inspired by ideals.
01:05 I believe today, if one wants to solve the problems
01:11 of this world, that one has to be inspired by visions.
01:18 The invasion of a country, taking off hostages,
01:23 killing some hostages, inflicting over 1,000 casualties,
01:30 that this could be believed to be possible
01:41 in the international system is amazing.
01:47 Now, here we have an attack on Israeli territory itself
01:52 whose purpose can only be to mobilize the Arab world
02:00 against Israel and to get off the track
02:05 of peaceful negotiations.
02:10 There has to be some penalty.
02:13 I think Israel has no choice except to invade Gaza
02:18 and to try to put this kind of relationship to an end.
02:24 - You have met in your political life
02:32 many leaders several times, Mao, Brezhnev, Putin,
02:37 other autocrats, dictators, populists.
02:40 Which leader was the most scary personality
02:45 that you have ever met?
02:47 - I don't like the word scary.
02:50 - Or dangerous.
02:52 - Well, in terms of capability, I would say Mao.
02:56 - He killed almost 90 million people.
02:58 Mao is still celebrated in China.
03:01 - He would kill what was needed to achieve his objectives.
03:06 - You have met Xi Jinping several times.
03:10 Would you say that he has changed his personality
03:14 and we have to deal with a different,
03:16 more autocratic Xi today than a couple of years ago?
03:21 - I think the early Chinese leaders that we met--
03:25 - Deng Xiaoping.
03:26 - Like Deng Xiaoping were easier to deal with
03:32 because for them, accommodation to the international system
03:39 was of prime importance in order to build their economy.
03:44 - How optimistic are you for the future of democracy?
03:48 - I think democracy is in trouble.
03:51 Now the life of people changes dramatically
03:57 and the inequalities of income are more obvious
04:07 than they were in previous periods.
04:09 So that the need for compromise and for understanding
04:16 which you and I believe are central
04:28 to a democratic system are in great danger.
04:34 And that in the West and in the rest of the world,
04:39 the easiest way to seize power
04:44 is by control of the military
04:48 and by control of government
04:53 through authoritarian means.
05:04 And once power is enjoyed,
05:08 people are very reluctant to leave it.
05:12 - Henry, from the perspective of a 100-year-old person,
05:17 are Biden and/or Trump too old for office?
05:22 - Biden is an elected president
05:29 and I have no,
05:32 I don't agree with some of his policies,
05:39 but I don't attack him.
05:47 - Should there be, instead of a minimum age
05:51 for an American president, perhaps a maximum age?
05:55 - Look, let me answer your question this way.
05:59 The point of view that I represent
06:08 and that I have explained to you
06:10 has no candidate in the presidency now.
06:15 But on issues of national interest,
06:23 I have supported Biden in the Ukraine war.
06:28 So he's a different phenomenon from Trump,
06:32 with whom I also have had friendly relations.
06:36 But Trump has been so focused on himself
06:41 that I think he would find it very difficult
06:44 to unify the country.
06:50 - Which political decision that you took in your career
06:54 would you decide differently today?
06:59 - You know, I'm often asked that question.
07:02 I think the directions I wouldn't change,
07:07 but there might be tactical,
07:10 there are tactical decisions along the way
07:14 that prove strong,
07:17 like my proclamation of the year of Europe was premature.
07:22 And therefore,
07:26 in the Vietnam War that is always mentioned,
07:34 my overriding conviction was
07:40 not to throw the government that had fought with us
07:46 to the absolutists.
07:48 And I thought we had to preserve this government
07:55 that we had created,
07:57 and that turned out to be incompatible
08:01 with our domestic politics.
08:04 But if we had acted otherwise,
08:07 and by we I don't mean me alone,
08:10 or me primarily,
08:13 but if America had acted otherwise,
08:17 and thrown South Vietnam to the wolves
08:23 in any administration,
08:27 it would have undermined the credibility of our alliances.
08:32 So,
08:40 should we have gotten out earlier?
08:43 It's hard to say because our opponents
08:47 would permit us to get out earlier
08:52 only on conditions
08:55 that would have looked
08:58 like the absolute weakness
09:03 of the United States,
09:07 and inability to protect them.
09:11 - Henry, you could make a political decision,
09:14 and it would be immediately executed
09:17 without any discussion.
09:19 Which decision would that be?
09:21 What would you decide?
09:23 - On AI,
09:24 I'm trying to bring together scientists
09:30 and thoughtful people
09:36 who are trying to find a way out.
09:39 The scientists have no evil intentions.
09:47 Their intentions are good,
09:51 but they're developing what they see.
09:57 But we have to find a means of unite that
10:04 freedom and
10:08 coexistence in the world.
10:12 - Will, in the long run,
10:14 the machines serve human beings,
10:18 or will human beings serve the machines?
10:21 - That's the question of our lifetime.
10:24 I think it can be avoided,
10:26 but only by understanding the essence of this intelligence.
10:34 Which will also be able to generate its own point of view.
10:39 It's the big challenge of our future,
10:43 and it's on that level,
10:45 it's in the interest of China
10:51 and other advanced countries,
10:55 and eventually all countries to join it.
11:01 Because otherwise they're in the hands
11:06 of machinery that they don't understand.
11:13 I'm very concerned with AI.
11:15 You ask a question,
11:17 and you get an answer.
11:21 And you believe in this answer,
11:25 even though you have no idea
11:29 what the process is by which the answer is produced.
11:34 And how the computer acquires its own knowledge.
11:42 Once these machines can communicate with each other,
11:49 which will certainly happen within five years,
11:57 then it becomes almost a species problem
12:02 of whether the human species can retain its individuality
12:09 in the face of this competition
12:15 that it itself has created.
12:18 This is the profound problem
12:26 we are now dealing with a genuinely different intelligence.
12:31 - Henry, very last question.
12:36 In 50 years, how should people speak of you in one sentence?
12:41 - I first want to say, I don't worry too much about that.
12:53 But I'd like to think of me as having been born
12:58 in a free society and wanted to bring,
13:13 to contribute to world order,
13:21 so that freedom isn't constrained by constant crisis.
13:26 That's why I've devoted myself
13:38 in various wars around the world,
13:42 to bringing them to a constructive end.
13:48 And wherever possible, a democratic solution.
13:52 (silence)
13:54 [BLANK_AUDIO]