Former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz, Leader in Cold War Nuclear Arms Reduction, Passes Away

Former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] George Shultz, former U.S. Secretary of State who led the Cold War-era nuclear arms reduction treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union, has passed away at the age of 100.

The Hoover Institution, the think tank affiliated with former Secretary Shultz, announced on the 7th (local time) that he passed away the previous day at his home on the Stanford University campus.

Shultz, who served as Secretary of Labor and Secretary of the Treasury under the Richard Nixon administration and later as Secretary of State under the Ronald Reagan administration, was the key figure in negotiating the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.

The INF Treaty banned the production, testing, and deployment of intermediate- and short-range ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers, effectively ending the arms race between the U.S. and the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

He also had significant ties to Korea. During his tenure as Secretary of State, Shultz accompanied President Reagan on his visit to Korea in 1983 and visited Korea several times.

In 1987, then-Senator Joe Biden sent a letter to Secretary Shultz urging efforts to secure the release of political prisoners, known as conscience prisoners, under the Chun Doo-hwan regime.

In 1992, Shultz was awarded the 2nd Seoul Peace Prize in recognition of his contributions to world peace and human harmony.

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