Alfred E. Eckes Jr. Quotes

I don’t talk to countries that exhibit bad behavior.

Every diplomatic breakthrough is preceded by a crisis, but not every crisis leads to a breakthrough.

When a rising power confronts a ruling power, bad things usually happen.... This is what happens when an extablished entity faces an upstart.... To avoid a disasterous clash like war, both parties have to make an adjustment, but the ruling power has to make more painful adjustments.

It's not just Iraq - it's the Atlantic partnership which is at stake.

Diplomacy is not an end in itself if it does not advance U.S. interests.

I believe the U.S. already understands and will understand more and more that only a strong Russia will respond to the genuine interests of the United States.

There are a lot of things that have to be considered in National. The military aspect of it is only one of them. I'm confident that President Bush will have all of those things laid out for him before he makes the decision.

In these days of intimate relations, of economic stress and of intense desire to protect national interests and advance national opportunity, the treatment of questions which, from a legal standpoint, are domestic, often seriously affects international relations. The principle, each nation for itself to the full extent of its powers, is the principle of war, not of peace.

Every government is in some respects a problem for every other government.

I do not believe that diplomacy equals weakness…. If you are going to use force you better make sure that it is effective.

Americans tend to go for it all. In international politics you can’t have it all. You have to compromise.

Great powers engage.

Senator, in everything I said about Iraq, I turned out to be right, and you turned out to be wrong.

Foreign policy matters cannot be intelligently decided in a large general meeting.

Would it not be worthwhile to pause a moment before we commit ourselves to war at the pleasure of other nations in whose councils we shall have but one vote?

We have to deal with it diplomatically if we can, militarily if we must.

In relations with other nations, there is neither right nor wrong; there is only strength and weakness.

If Russia and the United States approach each other in starkly adversarial terms, the conflict will badly warp the foreign policy of both countries ...

Ultimately, when you have to deal with a whole country, priorities change.

Diplomacy can and will matter; little is inevitable in international relations.

As president, I decided that a strong, confident America could advance our national security by engaging directly with the Iranian government. We've seen the results.

We believe that government in Britain should be working to restore our reputation on the international stage after Iraq and engage better within Europe.

Like other countries in the world, China must uphold its own sovereignty, territorial integrity and development interests. At the same time, we are willing to properly handle differences and disagreements in state-to-state relations.

President Bush has a track record of making the right decisions when it comes to national security.

The amount of military force necessary to provide reassurance depends on how dangerous people think the world is. And that I think ultimately depends upon the kinds of government that hold sway in major countries.