fbpx

Trump Discusses Russia, Iran in Meeting with Henry Kissinger

President-elect Donald Trump met with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger at Trump Tower on Thursday.

“President-elect Trump and Dr. Kissinger have known each other for years and had a great meeting,” Trump’s transition team said in a readout after the meeting. “They discussed China, Russia, Iran, the EU and other events and issues around the world.

“I have tremendous respect for Dr. Kissinger and appreciate him sharing his thoughts with me,” added Trump in a statement.

Kissinger was not too thrilled with the outcome of the election but made clear that he was open to offering Trump some guidance if asked to do so. “We should stop debating that question. He is the president-elect. We must give him an opportunity to develop his philosophy,” Kissinger told The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg last week. “I will not reach out to him, but that has been my approach to every president since I left office. If he asks me to come see him, I will.”

Trump and Kissinger met once during the election. Trump disclosed part of his conversation with the former Sec. of State in campaign rallies after the meeting without mentioning his name. “One of the biggest diplomats of the country, he’s a friend of mine – you saw recently I have actually met with him, it was all over the place – and he said, ‘Donald, I thought you were wrong in your approach; I thought it was too tough. But you know what? All of those countries are calling me [and asking], ‘What do we do, what do we do? How can we make him happy? If he wins, what can we do?’” Trump said during a campaign rally in May.

Meanwhile, two new names surfaced on Thursday as leading candidates for Secretary of State in the Trump administration. Former US Army General and CIA director David Petraeus has entered the race to become Donald Trump’s secretary of state, The Guardian reported, citing diplomatic sources, while NBC reported that Trump is expected to offer the post of the top diplomat to former presidential nominee Mitt Romney during a meeting scheduled for Sunday. 

Subscribe now to
the Daily Kickoff

The politics and business news you need to stay up to date, delivered each morning in a must-read newsletter.