Henry Kissinger: China, US must reveal red lines to avoid conflict

China’s continued growth means Washington and Beijing will inevitably “step on each others’ toes”, says American former secretary of state, 95

But he is “optimistic” about US-China ties, saying problems can be worked through if each side is clear about the concessions they are willing to make

Reading Time:2 minutes

Former US Secretary State Henry Kissinger. Photo: Reuters

Published: 1:15pm, 6 Nov 2018Updated: 9:42pm, 6 Nov 2018

Speak openly to each other about your red lines and the concessions you are willing to make to avoid conflict.

That was Henry Kissinger’s advice to feuding world powers on Tuesday, as he warned Washington and Beijing an all-out conflict between them would destroy the current world order.

Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore, the American former secretary of state, 95, who is widely respected for his prescient views on geopolitics, said it was inevitable that the world’s two biggest economies would “step on each others’ toes” as the Asian power continued to grow rapidly.

“The challenge is to maintain a fundamentally cooperative relationship amid inherent differences of approach,” Kissinger said.

He said: “It is essential for China and the United States to [talk] to each other about what the objectives are that they feel they must achieve and what the concessions are that they must not be asked to make, and the concessions each is willing to make.”

Chinese leader Zhou Enlai with Henry Kissinger in Beijing in 1971. Photo: AFP

Kissinger, who played a key role in Washington’s rapprochement with Beijing in 1971, said both sides could do better in dealing with one another.