Mahmoud Abbas Quotes

Cool, realistic diplomats are prepared to try to negotiate with any type of regime whenever the national interest calls for it; the last thing that should ever be done to turn emotional or "demonize" another foreign leader no matter how nasty he may be.

You aren't going to be successful as a diplomat if you don't understand the strategic context in which you are actually negotiating. It is not deal making. It's not.

Trump has got to define what he seeks to achieve with Russia, and then use diplomacy and sometimes coercion to achieve those ends. Right now, aside from this fight with ISIS, which I would underscore, you know, the Obama administration has been trying to fight ISIS with Russia for several years now.

The one thing that I remember from all of my intelligence briefings and my dealings with the Russians is that when you deal with the Russians, you have to deal with them from strength, not from weakness.

We must stop using the language of force and return to the path of civilized diplomatic and political settlement.

In an ideological age, diplomacy may seem weak and prosaic. But sometimes it is all we have.

I'm simply saying that there are advantages in sending a skilled diplomat who can always say, 'I'll get back to you on that, Mr. Minister'.

Modern diplomats approach every problem with an open mouth.

We are not going to achieve a new world order without paying for it in blood as well as in words and money.

My diplomatic position will not consist of going and kneeling down in front of George Bush.

I don't think that anybody should be ruling in or ruling out anything while we are conducting diplomacy.

Sanctions and negotiations can be very ineffective, and indeed foolish, unless the people you are talking with and negotiating with and trying to reach agreements with are people who can be trusted to keep their word.

You can’t outsource diplomacy. You can’t do it unless you do it.

American diplomacy is easy on the brain but hard on the feet.

There was no authority with which diplomacy could deal.

Negotiations are the most essential tool of statecraft.

Iran is for negotiations…. This is the principle of Iranian Foreign Policy…. Iranians should make sure that the United States is not using pressure on Iran for negotiations.

Statesmen should, you see, be very careful how they proceed to acts of positive hostility against the towns or inhabitants of any country with whom they ever intend to be on terms of alliance or kindness

I believe in diplomacy; I don't believe in talking to... that talking to Iran somehow constitutes a concession or a favour.

My goal is to be the tough negotiator but... not to air differences through press releases.

With little fanfare, Jared Kushner is quietly tackling Washington's slow, outdated modus operandi while simultaneously engaging in high-level diplomacy that promotes America's interests on the world stage.

There is always a chance [for negotiations with Japan], or else it makes no sense to talk. How great is it? Right now, it is difficult for me to say, because this will depend, among other things, on the flexibility of our partners.

Trump has put the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue at the top of his priority list, and he has employed a tactic of maximum pressure and engagement, but engagement can only occur if the conditions are right.

We've said to the Iranians all along . . . we still remain open to diplomacy. But it's been very clear that the Iranians don't want to engage with us.

The point is that in any country, including the United States, may be in the United States even more often than in any other country, foreign policy is used for internal political struggle.