Henry A. Kissinger Quotes

The most important thing that certainly the United States and other Asian and Pacific actors have done is to urge that whatever happens, however the dispute is resolved, that it be resolved peacefully.

I've worked for four presidents, and I've concluded that almost nothing is inevitable. History is to a significant extent the result of the interaction of personalities and ideas. And so I don't believe war between the U.S. and China is in any way inevitable, and it's well within the province of diplomacy and statecraft to avoid it.

Whether we report Iran to the council or not, I believe the only way forward is through diplomacy.

I would have said, before the World Trade Center events, that he would try to get a normal relationship with China - making clear to China what the limits are of what America can accept, but also showing understanding for some of Chinese necessities. I thought he was moving towards the position that I have more or less advocated.

The president desires a peaceful resolution of the confrontation with North Korea and we'll continue to pursue that, but it all begins when the Kim regime announces their willingness to abandon their nuclear and ballistic missiles program and not before.

Peace will never be won if men reserve for war their greatest efforts, Peace, too, requires well-directed and sustained sacrificial endeavor. Given that, we can, I believe, achieve the great goal of our foreign policy, that of enabling our people to enjoy in peace the blessings of liberty.

Our reluctance for conflict should not be misjudged as a failure of will.

As a liberal and progressive, I abhor the notion of conflict and bloodshed and very much want to find a diplomatic solution to the Iran nuclear issue.

Wishful thinking won't make the Palestinians an Israeli peace partner, no matter how much President Barack Obama pressures Israel to make concessions; caustically mocking Putin's worldview won't make it any less real or mitigate the Russian threat.

Turkey can be a bridge to regimes and actions the United States can't reach. Turkey can talk to people the United States can't talk to.

Our strategic dialogue with China can both protect American interests and uphold our principles, provided we are honest about our differences on human rights and other issues and provided we use a mix of targeted incentives and sanctions to narrow these differences.

Nowhere is it written that there must be conflict between the United States and China.

There is no reason why we should not have peaceful relations with the world if we cease playing the role of international Meddlesome Mattie.

... the greatest moral victory in the history of civilization if it actually keeps out of a war.

A display of reason rather than a threat of force should be the determining factor in the intercourse among nations.

All States do not have the same interests, but are there any interests which cannot be infinitely better reconciled before than after a war?

I have desired as sincerely as any man—I sometimes think more than any other man—that our present difficulties might be settled without the shedding of blood.

… in a tense situation, if time could be given for everyone to discuss what was going on before they actually went to war, we might come to our senses. Most of us are taught as children to count to 30 before we open our mouths when we were angry, and that same lesson should apply to nations.

English [foreign] policy is to float lazily downstream, occasionally putting out a diplomatic boat-hook to avoid collisions.

For foreign policy it is necessary to have men who inspire confidence.

I believe in much more diplomacy, not less.

I do not see it as desirable for South Korea to take the back seat and watch discussions between the U.S. and China.

When Barack Obama was running for president, he committed to leading the United Nations and other countries towards a common global goal. Obama believed that he could speak to allies and dictators directly and charm them into seeing the error of their ways.

Israel's foreign policy has three points: the relationship with the U.S., the relationship with the U.S., and the relationship with the U.S.