Intergovernmental Organizations Quotes

Genuine association of interest on the part of the great powers must precede the transformation of the united nations military alliance into a political society of nations.

To the creators of the League of Nations who originated the first serious efforts to a better understanding between nations

Once again the mastermind was Lionel Curtis, and the earlier Round Table Groups and Institutes of International Affairs were used as nuclei for the new network.

I think that all countries that participate in multilateral institutions see the institutions as a way of advancing what they view as their national interests and they see in many cases multi-lateral institution as the best way to do that.

Is multilateralism nothing more than a dodge for simple inaction?

If multilateral institutions cannot bring about peace and the rule of law because of the vested interests of their members, then both national democracy and global governance will continue to be rocked by crises.

Countries will cooperate with each other, and are more likely to cooperate with each other when they share a common culture, as is most dramatically illustrated in the European Union. But other groupings of countries are emerging in East Asia and in South America. Basically, as I said, these politics will be oriented around, in large part, cultural similarities and cultural antagonism.

… make Englishmen cognizant of the processes through which the progressive destinies of Europe are being worked out, so that whenever European Affairs may call for interference, they may be in no doubt as to the course to be pursued.

International institutions are composed of governments. Governments control their own military forces and police.

Internationalism protects the sovereignty of my country

There is no reason why agreement on particular points should not be both possible and advantageous to the so-called neutrals and to one or more of the blocs, either existing or in the process of formation, within the League of Nations.

Multinational unions are created in a search for more power. This leads either to irresponsible warfare as a result of meddling in foreign affairs, or to irresponsible alliances.

The world needs a new global architecture, additional layers of governance, to deal with issues that neither nations nor traditional forms of intergovernmental organizations can cope with.

Like a lot of New Yorkers, I assumed that I knew all about the U.N. I was shocked to find out it's not like anything I had in mind. There are only six languages accepted there. It's considered international territory.

The international community lies at the center of the Obama foreign policy. Unfortunately, it is a fiction. There is no such thing. Different countries have different histories, geographies, necessities, and interests. There's no natural, inherent, or enduring international community.

Even in political considerations, now-a-days, you have stronger motives to feel interested in the fate of Europe than in the fate of the Central or Southern parts of America.

The Organization of American States [OAS] is a kind of mini United Nations where we can be voted down in only three languages instead of six [the official UN languages], thereby saving translator’s fees.

I've lived and worked in Brussels and New York at the U.N. and worked all over the world. I would jump on a plane and be in Kabul one week and then Dafur the next.

World government is a premature concept at this stage. We are moving more and more into supernational arrangements, but it is too early still.

The main actors on the world stage are the size of continents, be they nation states or voluntary groupings of nation states such as the E.U. Nostalgia can help us ignore these harsh realities for a while, but it will not make them go away.

In fact UN is more of a galaxy of organisations and agencies than one machine.

The problem with the United Nations is that while democracy within nations is the best available form of government, democracy among nations can be a moral disaster - especially if some nations are not democracies.

The African Development Bank is one of the most aggressive advocates of regional integration.

We believe that when all nations adhere to international rules and norms and when we conduct on the basis of sovereign equality and mutual respect, our nations feel secure, and our economies prosper.

A global democracy works only when countries trust one another.