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A heated discussion between two heavyweights from opposite sides of the international spectrum spiced up the first day of the 2005 Asian Leadership Conference, when former U.S secretary of state Henry Kissinger and former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohammad clashed over their views on international terror and globalization.
An outspoken critic of U.S intervention abroad, Mahathir threw down the gauntlet by saying the world was living in terror. Those in powerful countries feared terrorists, and everyone else was afraid of the powerful countries, of their use of economic sanctions and military force, he said in a discussion forum at the Chosun Ilbo-sponsored conference.
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Former U.S. secretary of state Henry Kissinger (left) speaks at the Asian Leadership Conference, which opened Thursday as former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohammad (center) and former Japanese prime minister Nakasone Yasuhiro listen. The conference is hosted by the Chosun Ilbo to mark its 85th anniversary.
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Mahathir said leaders of superpowers took excessive pride in themselves and had been leading the world in a lopsided way. He said unilateral decisions made by leaders of powerful countries were claiming lives in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.
Kissinger, who laid the groundwork for the U.S.กฏ foreign affairs and security strategies from the 1970s, countered the world could not blame the U.S. for the current situation. Some countries had only themselves to blame for their plight, he said.
Mahathir again provoked Kissinger by saying that if U.S leaders had paid attention to information about terrorism, the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington could have been prevented. Kissinger shot back it was unreasonable to expect U.S leaders to know of terrorist attack plans in advance when zealots around the world were planning Crusades.
Kissinger said people around the world expected the U.S to understand their feelings. We live in a globalized world, but globalization is not the result of a master plan of a certain country, he added.
New Zealand's former prime minister Jim Bolger attempted to smooth ruffled feathers by saying it was problematic to depend on powerful countries to solve all the problems of the world. But he added the U.S. should keep it in mind that its policies have consequences around the globe.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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