Henry Kissinger Celebrates His 100th Birthday and Reflects on His Long and Distinguished Career in Public Service

Henry Kissinger, the former diplomat and presidential adviser, is celebrating his 100th birthday on Saturday. Kissinger is known for his key role in American foreign policy of the 1960s and 1970s, including attempts to pull the U.S. out of Vietnam. He is also inextricably linked to many of the conflict’s most disputed actions.

Kissinger is outliving many of his political contemporaries who guided the United States through one of its most tumultuous periods, including the presidency of Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War. His son, David Kissinger, wrote in The Washington Post on Thursday that his father’s centenary “might have an air of inevitability for anyone familiar with his force of character and love of historical symbolism.”

Despite his age, Kissinger remains in good health. He has had multiple heart surgeries, is hard of hearing, and is blind in one eye. However, he is still active in public life, having recently written an article for The Atlantic on the importance of diplomacy in the modern world.

Kissinger has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career, including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1973. He is also the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States.

Kissinger’s 100th birthday is a reminder of his long and distinguished career in public service. His legacy will continue to be remembered for generations to come.