PrintDecember 26, 2006
A Kissinger gambit in Iraq? Not yet
Henry Kissinger is first and foremost a historian of European Great Power politics. The first rule of that long history is to split one's most powerful opponents and play them against each other. All the Euro Powers tried it, century after century. It does work. President Nixon and Henry Kissinger split the Sino-Soviet Bloc with their "opening to China" in 1969-77. They thereby weakened the Soviet Empire, allowing the US to retreat from Vietnam and still win the Cold War. The Kissinger gambit was a master stroke of power politics. It was the best option in a time of American retreat. Today, a Kissinger gambit in Iraq would play off the two biggest forces there: The minority Sunnis against the majority Shiites. That idea is now being publicly pushed by the Saudi ruling family, who are Sunni fundamentalists and therefore lethally threatened by Shiite imperialism from Iran. (Got that, Congressman Reyes? This is important! Pretend it's WWE Team Wrestling.) To get us...(Read Full Article)
