Madman Diplomacy

Madman Diplomacy

Madman Diplomacy is a diplomatic technique described by Henry Kissinger.

During the Vietnam War, Kissinger tried to convince Viet Cong and allied leaders that US President Richard Nixon was a 'madman' who might imminently attack with nuclear weapons to resolve the war once and for all. Kissinger did not believe that this was true but presented this as the state of affairs.

Because of the constant severe (illusory) threat, Kissinger claimed that he was able to extract more concessions from the enemy than if he had not made the threat. He described his technique years later.


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