Joichi Ito Quotes

We are all mediators, translators.

To have compromise you must first have dialog. That is the true path of democracy.

I've grown up a little bit. I understand the importance of the negotiation. It is a collective act.

I think what helps me is that delegations of all sizes - the small, the medium, the large, the largest - they all have seen me in action. They all have seen me unlocking blockages, unlocking impasses for several years now, and they all know that... I can bring a constructive mood to the table.

You ought to dialogue first before you start throwing spears. And I think the U.N. provides an opportunity for dialogue.

Our position is that we can sit down and talk to try to solve our problems through dialogue.

Diplomacy is a frequently neglected imperative.

Talk brings opponents together.

A huge amount of negotiations and diplomacy has nothing to do with bartering or arguing but is just trying to get everyone [doing the negotiating] on the same page. It takes yours, days, even weeks sometimes.

Coming from a smaller nation in Central Europe, I have learned pretty soon how important are agreed rules, cooperation, respect for partners and, most of all, willingness to listen and find common solutions.

I face no problem in communicating with the people of Orissa whom I meet everyday.

So long as human history continues, we will face the perennial challenge of realizing, maintaining and strengthening peace through dialogue, of making dialogue the sure and certain path to peace. We must uphold and proclaim this conviction without cease, whatever coldly knowing smiles or cynical critiques may greet us.

We have global communication and yet confrontation is more common than dialogue.

My career was always about working with people, and understanding issues and problems and helping them to solve those issues and problems. How you deal with people - that's what diplomacy is all about. So while I'm not a career diplomat, many of the skills I had seemed to directly translate into the diplomatic arena.

Calm can solve all issues.

I have always believed in dialogue and in nonviolence, and if you look at my background you will see that it has always been my policy to talk to everyone.

The best way to solve problems and to fight against war is through dialogue.

I learned firsthand that there would simply be no wars if people engaged in real conversation.

When you have a conflict, that means that there are truths that have to be addressed on each side of the conflict. And when you have a conflict, then it's an educational process to try to resolve the conflict. And to resolve that, you have to get people on both sides of the conflict involved so that they can dialogue.

The Iranians and Persians are excellent at the art of negotiation.

Diplomacy is fundamentally working with people, bringing people together to deal with difficult issues.

Well, the thing that I learned as a diplomat is that human relations ultimately make a huge difference.

I think we can work through a lot of these issues.

We have to realize only in communication, in real knowledge, in real reaching out, can there be an understanding that there's humanity everywhere, and that's what I'm trying to do.

Leadership has a harder job to do than just choose sides. It must bring sides together.