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Commentary
The Wall Street Journal

Kissinger Sees a Global Leadership Vacuum

A dearth of statesmen has left the world misruled by populists and technocrats.

walter_russell_mead
walter_russell_mead
Ravenel B. Curry III Distinguished Fellow in Strategy and Statesmanship
Dr. Henry A. Kissinger delivers remarks during an award ceremony hosted by the Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon honoring him for his years of distinguished public service May 9, 2016. Dr. Kissinger was presented with the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.(DoD photo by Senior Master Sgt. Adrian Cadiz)(Released)
Caption
Henry Kissinger accepts the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service at the Pentagon on May 9, 2016. (US Secretary of Defense via Flickr)

Is the quality of world leadership declining just as humanity’s need for great leadership has become more urgent than ever? As I learned over a long lunch this month, Henry Kissinger thinks that is exactly where things stand, and he worries that civilization may be imperiled as a result.

Worry comes naturally to Mr. Kissinger. His first book, A World Restored (1957), laid out some basic ideas that dominate his thinking to this day. Mr. Kissinger believes that only a handful of people at any given time understand the complicated architecture of a viable world order, and that an even smaller number have the gifts of leadership required to create, defend or reform the delicate international framework that makes even partial peace possible.

Read the full article in the Wall Street Journal.