John G. Stoessinger

John George Stoessinger (October 14, 1927 - November 20, 2017),[1][2] a prize-winning author of ten leading books on world politics, has been the recipient of the distinguished Bancroft Prize for History for The Might of Nations, and has served as Acting Director for the Political Affairs Division at the United Nations. On the eve of World War II, Dr. Stoessinger fled from Nazi-occupied Austria to Czechoslovakia. His family was saved by a Japanese diplomat, Chiune Sugihara, who issued three visas to transit Russia, allowing them to escape to Shanghai via Siberia and Kobe. Dr. Stoessinger was a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, lecturing extensively throughout the world, and served as Distinguished Professor of Global Diplomacy at the University of San Diego.[3]

Stoessinger's work is notable for his individualistic analyses of war, contrasted with the systemic views more commonly studied by political scientists after the Second World War. An example of this is his work in Why Nations Go to War. In the first section of his novel, The Iron Dice, Stoessinger offers an alternative explanation of the causes of World War I, one that includes human reactions and feelings.

In 1976, Stoessinger pleaded guilty to concealing fraud totaling at least $260,000 committed by Anne Lament, who used letters of recommendation from him which she addressed to overseas banks and governments.[4] He subsequently received a full Presidential Pardon from Ronald Reagan, thereby nullifying the original offense.