Draft

Henry A. Kissinger

Of the many millions who came from Germany to America, perhaps no one has had a greater opportunity directly to shape the destiny of his new homeland than Henry A. Kissinger, the first German-born U. S. Secretary of State.

Heinz Alfred Kissinger was born on May 27, 1923, in the Bavarian town of Fuerth where his father taught at a girls' secondary school. Growing up in an orthodox Jewish family, he became a good, if not outstanding student, with a pronounced love of soccer, that he still retains. Even then, childhood friends report, his game was one of strategy rather than of force.

After Hitler came to power in 1933, the family was subjected to increasing discrimination. The father was deprived of his job and soon the family was forced to join the millions of refugees from Nazi persecution. Louis and Paula Kissinger and their two sons arrived in New York City in 1938. For Heinz, now Henry, the change meant night classes at City College and work during the day in a factory.

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In 1943, Kissinger was drafted into the U. S. Army.
After 1945, he became a district administrator with the
military government in the American-occupied zone of
Germany.

Having taught at the Army's European Command Intelligence
School, he returned to the U. S. in 1946 and entered
Harvard College as a government major on a New York State
scholarship. There he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He
wrote so ambitious a senior honors thesis - on Kant,
Spengler, and Toynbee - that the school decided to adopt
a 'Kissinger rule' limiting the efforts of future students
to 150 pages.

Kissinger was to remain at Harvard for most of the next
19 years, earning his PhD in 1954 with an outstanding
dissertation later published as 'A World Restored;
Castlereagh, Metternich, and the Problems of Peace'.

As executive director of Harvard's foreign student
project (later Harvard International Seminar), he
established close contacts with many future leaders from
all over the world.

While still at Harvard, he also worked on a study for
the Council on Foreign Relations ('Nuclear Weapons and

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Foreign Policy') and served as advisor in various capacities to Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson. Nelson Rockefeller, whom Kissinger had met through the council, sought him out as advisor and friend. The transition from academic life to political action became complete in 1969, when Kissinger was appointed Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. He revitalized the National Security Council and shaped it into a major force in American foreign policy. He then had the opportunity to exercise his diplomatic skills, winning praise from Soviet Ambassador Dobrynin for being able to 'eat caviar with chopsticks'.

Broad new initiatives became his trademark - the opening moves toward Peking, the easing of relations with the Soviet Union, in particular the conclusion of the first agreement on the limitation of strategic arms (SALT), the ending of the conflict in Vietnam, and the successful 'shuttle diplomacy' in the Middle East. He was appointed Secretary of State in 1973. The Nobel Peace Prize in the same year recognized his efforts for international peace and stability.

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As a man in politics, Kissinger has not been spared
controversy. But he has also always known that
'the necessity of choice' makes this inevitable. As
John G. Stoessinger, Professor of Political Science
at the City University of New York, wrote recently:
'When history makes its judgment of the foreign policy
of Henry Kissinger, the chronicle will not, Kissinger
feels, pay much attention to his personal anguish
when he was forced to choose between competing claims.
Its iron pen will merely register the objective
consequences of his acts. Nor will history reveal
alternatives had he acted otherwise. He will never
know where the road not taken might have led. The
unending quest for meaningful choices in a tragic world
in which the only certainty is risk simply is a
statesman's lot. It is, therefore, in action in the
present that courage and humanity are born'.

Germany.
3008 Carpaen & (Horat)
Frielinger Str. 1f,
Mr. Carlo von Wedeking,

Persönsl Väsleutant
Suzanne 2. McFarlane

Sincerely,

writing.
but he appreciates your interest and thanks you for
marck. He is not now in the market for such a painting,
Secretary Klaasinger concerning the portrait of Bia-
I have your letter of July 9th addressed to

Dear Mr. von Wedeking:

July 27, 1976

[lc]

CARLO VON WEDEKIND

3008 GARBSEN 6 (HORST), 9. July 1976

TELEFON GARBSEN (05131) 51896

GESCHÄFTL.: LANGENHAGEN (0511) 735956

Secretary of State
Mr. Henry KISSINGER
Department of State
Washington D.C. 20520
USA

Dear Sir,

knowing of your interest in BISMARCK-portraits I would like to make you an
offer of a good portrait by Lehnbach.

Painted 1893, oil on card-cavel-board, 65 x 75 cm, signed and dated Lehnbach
1893, unframed.

The painting was formerly in the ownership of Franz Schütte, who lend it
to the KUNSTHALLE BREMEN. I have got it from there in 1957.

The portrait is absolutely genuine and in good condition. Dr. Leppien of the
KUNSTHALLE HAMBURG has seen it.

My price DM 10.500,--.

If you are interested please let me know, so that we can make further
arrangements. Should my offer be of no interest to you, I shall be very
thankful, if you will be so kind to send me a short message. Many thanks

Picture enclosed

Delivered to Minister Vorontsov
by messenger 12/20/76, 1:15 p.m.

December 20, 1976

Dear Mr. General Secretary:

It gives me great pleasure to send you my warmest
personal and official congratulations on the occasion
of your 70th birthday. Mrs. Kissinger joins me in
wishing you a long and fruitful life of continued
accomplishment.

I leave office, Mr. General Secretary, with the
best of memories of our long association and of your
many personal kindnesses to me. We have met many
times, always in a spirit of responsibility toward
world peace. And we have, I believe, reason to believe
that we have done a great deal to improve relations
between our two nations and thus reduced the danger of
war. Much yet remains to be done, but I know that you
and my successor will continue the work that is now so
well begun.