Washington, 30 November 2023 (dpa/MIA) — Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger has died, aged 100.

The German-American died on Wednesday at his home in the state of Connecticut, a spokeswoman for the communications agency which represents his consulting firm Kissinger Associates said.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner, whose speciality was secret diplomacy, was a colourful figure in US politics. But Kissinger's critics accused him of being unscrupulous and obsessed with power.

One of his greatest successes was the rapprochement between the US and China in the early 1970s.

Heinz Alfred Kissinger was born in Franconia in 1923. He was 15 years old when his Jewish parents fled with him to New York.

After school and military service, Kissinger studied at Harvard, where he later taught. In 1969, then president Richard Nixon appointed him security advisor and later secretary of state. He was the most influential politician in Washington when it came to foreign policy.

A significant milestone in his career was the preparation of Nixon's 1972 trip to China. Kissinger travelled to Beijing on a secret mission, paving the way for Nixon's visit and the normalization of relations. Kissinger became the celebrated architect of the US-China rapprochement.

He negotiated disarmament treaties and peace agreements and became something of a media star. However, Kissinger also left his fingerprints on more questionable aspects of US foreign policy.

His role in the secret bombing of Cambodia, and accusations regarding his role in the 1973 military coup in Chile weigh heavily on his legacy.

There are also questions about whether Kissinger really pushed for an end to the Vietnam War or whether he prolonged it in order to increase Nixon's chances of re-election.