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For Kissinger personally, the success of his Moscow trip is particularly crucial for the continuation of his grand vision of American policy, for the maintenance of the accomplishments he has both achieved and has still in the making. So swiftly and dramatically has the Secretary of State worked radical changes in U.S. diplomacy—detente with Moscow, friendship with Peking, progress toward a settlement in the Middle East—that he has acquired something of the mystique of a magician, pulling doves of peace out of a hat for a fascinated circle of world watchers.
Of late, however, the Kissinger magic has come under attack as a kind of international legerdemain that is at least partly mere illusion. Critics, including Scoop Jackson and liberal academicians, charge that detente has been unproductive, that Kissinger's personal style of diplomacy pays more attention to principals than principles, that he has neglected relations with such proven allies as Europe and Japan for deals with America's ideological enemies in Moscow and Peking. They are hard problems, partly because final judgments remain to be uncovered by events.
Kissinger is a fast-moving target; aiming at him requires a long lead, and in a measure, he controls his trajectory.
The criticisms, voiced most loudly in recent weeks by Europeans (see box page 26), represent a startling reversal for Kissinger. In an Administration marked by scandal, he has not only survived but prospered—a scholar, statesman and superstar who has done the seemingly miraculous for so long that it has become almost routine. Despite the new chorus of complaints and questioning, Kissinger today probably has more impact than any other person in the world. Quite possibly, he has now become the world's indispensable man.
According to a recent Gallup poll, Kissinger is the man Americans admire most in the world today. Abroad he has achieved the kind of celebrity status seldom enjoyed by anyone but top movie stars; in fact, he has become in some places almost a cult hero. His round, expressive face draws more instant recognition in many nations than even that of the local ruler. Government leaders, like so many shy fans, inveigle ways to be photographed with him.
Arab sheiks, fascinated as much by the machismo image of his well-publicized dates with Actresses Jill St.
John and Mario Thomas as by his statesmanship, insist on being briefed by no one else. In Cairo he is referred to as "the American magician." Taxi drivers reverently point out to tourists the streets along which he has traveled, and when the car hits a pothole the cry is, "Where's Kissinger?"
Meeting other Western Hemisphere foreign ministers in Mexico City recently, the Secretary of State was so sought-after by his Latin American counterparts that they even pursued him to the men's room to carry out impromptu discussions. "Kissinger y Rabasa conferencian en el W.C.," headlined Mexico City's Ovaciones, after one such session involving Kissinger and Foreign Minister Emilio Rabasa.