Henry Kissinger will be 100 years old on May 27, but he retains a lucidity and intellectual clarity that deserve to be heard. He witnessed history for his influence on the US governments and today he has a present to take into account, as he has shown with his two recently published books, one on artificial intelligence – The age of AI – and another on large international leaders – Leadership –. On the occasion of his anniversary, The Economist has had a long eight-hour conversation with him, of which we reflect the most significant parts today in our International section. Do not miss it.

Kissinger’s obsession is no nonsense: the feasible risk of a third world war. Actually, between the war in Ukraine, the threat of invasion of Taiwan and the loss of influence of the United States as guarantor of world peace, the feeling is that humanity is sitting on top of a powder keg with various fuses that can be lit without control. The old diplomat warns us that we live “in a world with an unprecedented capacity for destruction”, and the reflection that leads him to say it is simple: “It has never been possible to destroy all adversaries, due to geographic limitations and precision . Today there are no limitations. Every adversary is 100% vulnerable.”

That is why he considers that the fate of humanity depends on the United States and China understanding each other. A few days ago, a meeting took place in Vienna between Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, and Wang Yi, director of the Chinese Communist Party’s Foreign Relations Office, which was positive in line with maintaining a climate of dialogue. in the face of as many divergences as both countries have on issues as disparate as trade, AI or climate change. The United States must understand that it is no longer the only king of the mambo and that the governance of the new world must be shared with China. Beijing’s influence in Africa, the Middle East or South America are more than enough arguments for Washington to take it seriously. The temptation to want to impose one on the other no longer makes sense. The world is a matter of two.