Europe Hands Henry a Last Hurrah

As Henry Kissinger himself might have put it, the end of a diplomatic era was at hand. Barring some unforeseen emergency, Kissinger's trip to the NATO ministerial conference in Brussels last week was to be his last journey abroad as U.S. Secretary of State. TIME Diplomatic Editor Jerrold Schecter accompanied the most traveled Secretary of State in U.S. history on his farewell voyage and cabled this report:

At first it seemed like just another Kissinger journey--one of 40 covering more than 560,000 miles that have carried him to 57 countries since he became Secretary of State in September 1973. Aboard his blue-and-white Boeing 707, Kissinger and his wife Nancy chatted with correspondents about events of great and not-so-great moment. Nancy's yellow Labrador, Tyler, had been in his first dogfight but was recovering nicely, thank you. After Jan. 20, Henry Kissinger would spend a restful month at Banker David Rockefeller's home on St. Barthelemy Island in the Caribbean. There would be a fitting punishment for the diplomatic press once Cyrus Vance took office: "The only shuttle you guys will take from now on is between New York and Washington." Asked who would paint his official portrait, which will be displayed at the State Department, Kissinger replied with a grin: "I can pick the artist, but Vance can pick the corridor."

On landing in Brussels, Kissinger threw himself into a series of mini-shuttles and summits. He called on King Baudouin, met with Crown Prince Hassan of Jordan and conferred with the European Community Commissioner for External Affairs, Sir Christopher Soames. There were also sessions with seven Foreign Ministers, notably Turkey's Ihsan Caglayangil and Greece's Dimitri Bitsios, both engaged in critical negotiations on the future of Cyprus.

No Illusions. At the NATO Council meeting, Kissinger spoke for history. In a 45-minute closed session he reviewed the state of the world and cautioned that it would be unwise for NATO to indicate in detail in advance how it would respond to a Soviet attack. By maintaining a nuclear option, NATO retains the credibility of its deterrent strength. Thus Kissinger urged the council to reject the Warsaw Pact's proposal for a treaty banning the first use of nuclear weapons and limiting the size of NATO. While warning of growing Soviet military strength, Kissinger stressed that the West should not become paralyzed by it. The West must show unity, will and consistency, not "oscillation between excessive fears and illusions," he said.

Above all, Kissinger underscored the U.S. commitment to NATO. "No alliance," he declared, "is as important as the North Atlantic alliance, and nothing is of more importance to the unity of the West." Then he read a message from President-elect Jimmy Carter promising that "the American commitment to maintaining the NATO alliance shall be sustained and strengthened under my Administration." NATO, said Carter, "lies at the heart of the partnership between North America and Western Europe."

Accolades for Kissinger flowed like the heady Beaujolais nouveau that has just arrived in Brussels. Portuguese Foreign Minister Jose Ferreira lauded the Secretary's "indelible imprint on the work of our council." NATO Secretary-General Joseph Luns hailed him as "one of the most effective Foreign Ministers of our century" and "a man to whom the adjective 'great' can be applied with sincerity." Belgian Foreign Minister Renaat van Elslande presented Kissinger with a reproduction of a Latin encyclopedia from the year 1120; West German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher gave him a 1642 engraving of Kissinger's birthplace, Fuerth, Germany.

Amidst the ringing praise for his wisdom and charm, darker moments in the complex relationship between the European-born U.S. Secretary and the Continent's leaders were mostly forgotten. The much-vaunted Year of Europe that Kissinger had advocated in 1973, without prior consultation, had outraged the allies. In the oil crisis and embargo of the same year, Kissinger privately described the Europeans as "craven" for failing to stand up to the oil producers. He exacerbated troubled U.S. relations with Greece and Turkey during the Cyprus invasion of 1974. Yet, as the Europeans well--and gratefully--realized, he had boldly assumed the role of U.S. President for foreign policy and symbolized America's steady resolve during a profound domestic crisis. He could threaten, he could promise--and he could deliver. As secret negotiator, summiteer and diplomat extraordinaire, Kissinger had fascinated the Europeans.

Decent Interval. On his final official trip, Kissinger resisted any temptation to grow maudlin. Instead, he spoke of how the fundamentals of American foreign policy, which he had helped establish, would endure. He foresaw no radical change in the U.S. policy of detente toward Moscow; he urged NATO ministers to create incentives for the Soviet Union to seek responsible courses of action. He was optimistic about Middle East negotiations now that the influence of the Palestine Liberation Organization has "been reduced" and relations between Syria and the Soviet Union have chilled.

Concluding his farewell appearance in Brussels, Kissinger stopped off in London in a final effort to salvage the deadlocked Rhodesian talks, to dine with Prime Minister Callaghan and attend a soccer match. Then he left for Washington, to sort out his plans for the future. There will be a "decent interval" of a year for work on his memoirs. And what then? When newsmen teased him, Henry Kissinger replied--some would say with a Mona Lisa smile--"I'll be back in 1985."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.