Paul Wolfowitz Quotes

In international affairs, you never threaten things you're not prepared to do.

Appeasement was never a very clever policy, and it should not be our option today.

There are two things that are very expensive in international relations: promises when they succeed and threats when they fail

Rogue regimes never respond to anything less than hardball.

Wars are, of course, as a rule to be avoided; but they are far better than certain kinds of peace.

All war represents a failure of diplomacy.

But as the arms-control scholar Thomas Schelling once noted, two things are very expensive in international life: promises when they succeed and threats when they fail.

This president failed so miserably in diplomacy that we are now forced to war.

Power alone is respected and ... in order to gain peace, the United States has no alternative but to wield it

For the maintenance of peace, nations should avoid the pin-pricks which forerun cannon shots.

There’s no reason to respect anyone’s word in that part of the world. The only thing they respect is force and the threat of force.

You can't get a diplomatic solution unless behind that, is the threat of force.

We need to defend against weaknesses within and enemies without, using the tools of civil society and hard power. We don't have to pick one over the other.

We need to quit appeasing our adversaries, and we need to stand with our allies.

The key lesson of the 1930s is that appeasement leads directly to war.

In my experience, bad actors respond to threats of military action or sanctions.

Peace is purchased from strength. It's not purchased from weakness or unilateral retreats.

Though no one wants war, Congress needed to give the President the authority he needs to protect America while encouraging the use of diplomacy and negotiations to try and arrive at a peaceful solution to this problem.

We have tried to make it clear that the United States is not just an old cow that gives more milk the more it is kicked in the flanks.

What we want is a lasting peace. We will oppose soft measures which invite the breaking of the peace.

The direct use of force is such a poor solution to any problem, it is generally employed only by small children and large nations.

Negotiate with those who wish to talk - and take action against those who create mischief.

There are consequences if you act militarily, and there's big consequences if you don't act.

Warfare is an utterly stupid method of settling differences of interest between different nations.

It is absolutely unacceptable to talk to Russia - or anyone for that matter - in the language of ultimatums and coercive measures.