Trump consults Kissinger on relations with China, Russia, Iran

Special to WorldTribune.com

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump sought out the advice of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on China, Russia, Iran, and Europe, his office said on November 17.

Kissinger, 93, who served under former Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, is best known for opening the door to China after decades of isolating the Asian giant.

President Richard Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger in Vienna, Austria, May 1972. / AFP / Getty
President Richard Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger in Vienna, Austria, May 1972. / AFP / Getty

Kissinger has been willing to talk with Trump, but made no secret of favoring Trump’s Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, and admitted that he expected her to win the White House race.

In an interview this month with The Atlantic magazine, Kissinger said that of the 2016 candidates, only Clinton shared America’s “traditional, outward-looking, internationalist model.”

The rise of Trump, who repeatedly questioned longtime U.S. alliances like NATO, means that “for the first time since the end of the Second World War, the future relationship of America to the world is not fully settled,” Kissinger said.

Despite Kissinger’s concerns, Trump’s office said they had a “great meeting.”

“I have tremendous respect for Dr. Kissinger and appreciate him sharing his thoughts with me,” Trump said, adding without giving details that they discussed China, Russian, Iran, Europe, and broader world affairs.