Henry A. Kissinger - contribution to "The Shining City,"
book published by Ronald Reagan Presidential Fdn. - Jan. 1997

Americans will look back upon Ronald Reagan's Presidency as
a period of great achievement, not only domestically but
internationally, for it was his Administration that was the
turning point when the end of the era of the Cold War became
inevitable.

It was a seminal time for the United States and for the
world, when old alliances were crumbling and a new world
order was emerging, opening the way for the spread of
democracy on the one hand, or fragmentation and chaos on the
other. Few Presidents in recent times have been called upon
to navigate such difficult shoals with so few dependable
charts.

But Ronald Reagan developed a foreign policy of
extraordinary consistency and relevance to the core issues
of the period. He had an uncanny talent for uniting the
American people because he possessed an extraordinary
intuitive rapport with the wellsprings of American
motivation and an unshakable faith in the greatness of our
country. President Reagan demonstrated that a sense of
direction and having the strength of one's convictions are
the key ingredients of leadership--along with a healthy dose
of humor and common sense.

These latter qualities can be illustrated by one of my
favorite anecdotes about Ronald Reagan, which took place
while he was Governor of California. As National Security
Advisor, I would brief him from time to time on the key
foreign policy issues of the day. It was during the Middle
East War of 1973, when the small Israeli air force was
suffering crippling losses. I told him that we would be
announcing that the United States would replace the downed
Israeli planes, but I was uncertain as to how to limit the
Arab reaction. "Why don't you just announce that you will
replace all the aircraft the Arabs *claim* to have shot
down?", he replied, knowing that these claims were wildly
inflated. I wish I had had him on my staff when I became
Secretary of State!

Ronald Reagan's achievements were many, but the most
important was the lasting legacy he left to the United
States, a legacy of confidence in ourselves and a vision for
the future of a strong and just America.

Henry A. Kissinger