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Peacemaker: U THANT, THE UNITED NATIONS AND THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE 1960s
In the early 1960s, a peaceful world seemed possible. The
still-young United Nations was regarded as humankind’s best
hope for ending war. African and Asian nations, having recently
won their freedom from colonial rule, sought influence on
the world stage. At the helm of their international efforts was
Secretary-General U Thant, a practising Buddhist and former
schoolteacher from Burma.
In Peacemaker, acclaimed historian Thant Myint-U traces his
grandfather’s integral yet forgotten roles in some of the twentieth
century’s most critical from battling white supremacist
mercenaries in the Congo and mediating an end to the Cuban
Missile Crisis to desperately trying to prevent the 1967 Six-Day
War. Drawing on newly declassified documents, he traces U
Thant’s tireless efforts to bring peace to Vietnam, create a fairer
international economy, safeguard the environment and avoid a
third world war.
A testament to the power of hope and individual action in times
of uncertainty, Peacemaker is an extraordinary chronicle of a golden
age of diplomacy, and vital to a fresh understanding of our world
today.
still-young United Nations was regarded as humankind’s best
hope for ending war. African and Asian nations, having recently
won their freedom from colonial rule, sought influence on
the world stage. At the helm of their international efforts was
Secretary-General U Thant, a practising Buddhist and former
schoolteacher from Burma.
In Peacemaker, acclaimed historian Thant Myint-U traces his
grandfather’s integral yet forgotten roles in some of the twentieth
century’s most critical from battling white supremacist
mercenaries in the Congo and mediating an end to the Cuban
Missile Crisis to desperately trying to prevent the 1967 Six-Day
War. Drawing on newly declassified documents, he traces U
Thant’s tireless efforts to bring peace to Vietnam, create a fairer
international economy, safeguard the environment and avoid a
third world war.
A testament to the power of hope and individual action in times
of uncertainty, Peacemaker is an extraordinary chronicle of a golden
age of diplomacy, and vital to a fresh understanding of our world
today.
369 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 20, 2025
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 15, 2025
Very insightful read about such a polarising and important figure from the 1960’s. Forgive my ignorance but this is the first time I have heard of U Thant, which I find hard to believe as I have read a lot of other stuff about the same time period. Maybe this is in part due to him being consigned to history as the book describes late on. However, that makes this book all the more important and I definitely recommend reading it. He shouldn’t be forgotten, especially after all he set out to achieve. It is a shame how much he was expected to do in a position where the only power really was prestige and then when not, becoming the world’s scapegoat. Credit to the author for this extensive research. I’m sure your grandfather would be proud.
And if you needed any more evidence that Nixon and Kissinger were scumbags, then look no further.
And if you needed any more evidence that Nixon and Kissinger were scumbags, then look no further.
Displaying 1 of 1 review