大象传媒

Professor David Rothkopf discovers how the fallout from the Yom Kippur war in 1974 resulted in the development of Henry Kissinger's shuttle diplomacy.

In January 1975, the US Secretary of state Henry Kissinger embarked on an exhausting timetable of talks, shuttling between Egypt and Israel and negotiating a disengagement agreement in the aftermath of the so called Yom Kippur war. This was the first time such a tactic had been used and has since became the hallmark of diplomacy where two sides cannot or will not sit down with each other.

We hear how Kissinger navigated the delicate negotiations, second guessing and often wooing the warring nations leaders into accepting a dramatic result, the like of which had never yet been seen in this most bitter of international disputes.

But, as Professor Rothkopf discovers, shuttle diplomacy can only work in the hands of a deft negotiator.

A Kati Whitaker production first broadcast on 大象传媒 Radio 4 in 2017.