Diplomacy Summary

Diplomacy is a detailed history of how powerful countries have managed their relations with one another through negotiation, alliances, threats, war and the balance of power. Henry Kissinger explains that countries do not always act according to morality or international law; they usually act according to their national interests, security needs and understanding of power. The book moves from the European balance-of-power system to the world wars, the Cold War and American foreign policy. Kissinger particularly compares the European tradition of practical diplomacy with the American tendency to describe foreign policy in moral and idealistic terms. His main lesson is that lasting peace requires more than good intentions. It requires realistic leadership, careful calculation, diplomatic flexibility and an international order that the major powers consider legitimate.

1. Diplomacy means managing relations between countries through communication, negotiation and compromise.

1. Countries usually protect their own interests before protecting abstract international ideals.

1. A balance of power prevents one country from becoming strong enough to dominate all others.

1. Kissinger presents Cardinal Richelieu as an important figure in the development of modern interest-based foreign policy.

1. The Congress of Vienna demonstrated that defeated powers should sometimes be included in a new order rather than permanently humiliated.

1. Otto von Bismarck succeeded because he understood the limits of German power, but later German leaders abandoned his restraint.

1. The First World War showed how alliances and military planning could reduce diplomatic flexibility.

1. Woodrow Wilson promoted collective security, self-determination and a morally guided international order.

1. Successful diplomacy requires leaders to understand both the intentions and fears of other countries.

1. Important quotation: “Intellectuals analyze the operations of international systems; statesmen build them.” This means that scholars explain world politics, but political leaders must make difficult decisions and construct workable international arrangements.