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There have been many excellent tributes to George Shultz today. Here's my contribution, which argues that although Shultz never had aura of a Kennan or Kissinger, he had every bit the claim to being America's greatest strategist of post-1945 era. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-02-08/george-shultz-understood-that-money-was-power?srnd=opinion&sref=nmVx3tQ5
This was because Shultz helped America solve three of the great strategic problems of late 20th century, and in doing so helped catapult US from malaise of 1970s to dominance of post-Cold War era.
First, by pushing shift to floating exchange rates in 1970s, he helped reenergize American economic power in an age of globalization. Second, as SecState, he helped reconnect American strategy and American values by putting the democratic revolution at the heart of US policy.
Third, he helped Reagan figure out how to wind down a bitter long-term rivalry peacefully and almost entirely on American terms. It was Shultz who played critical role in translating US geopolitical leverage into Soviet concessions that ended the Cold War.
His legacy remains relevant today. Advancing American values is a way of advancing American interests. Successful diplomacy with rivals involves a mixture of sharp pressure and conciliation. US power rests as much on financial advantages as military might.
