George F. Kennan Quotes

Nations like individuals do not always see alike or think alike, and international cooperation and progress are not helped by any nation assuming that it has a monopoly of wisdom or of virtue.

There must of course always be separate interests of different nations which their governments are bound to maintain, but there are also common interests in which all civilized nations share. These common interests arise from the interdependence of civilized peoples and they are a product of developing civilization.

The world is waiting for us, the world wants to engage with us, the world wants to be friendly with us, the world wants to be our partner in prosperity, and the world admires India in many ways.

A civilized nation can have no enemies, and one cannot draw a line across a map, a line that doesn't even exist in nature and say that the ugly enemy lives on the one side, and good friends live on the other.

Internationalism is a social and political theory, a certain concept of how human society ought to be organized, and in particular a concept of how the nations ought to organize their mutual relations.

World peace is no longer some pie-in-the-sky thing, because no single person or country is going to solve it on their own.

On the contrary. Internationalism also recognizes, by its very name, that nations do exist. It simply limits their scope more than one-sided nationalism does.

Free nations with different histories, economies and a vast amount of stubborn pride will never achieve complete agreement, even when they desire the same objectives.

The world needs a true leader, an Obama that promotes peace and understanding in the world.

The countries that share this conception should be able to go further together, without excluding the others, since they can still live in a greater community of exchange and co-operation.

I am grateful for the opportunities I have been given to participate in that work as a representative of my country, Canada, whose people have, I think, shown their devotion to peace.

The most tragic paradox of our time is to be found in the failure of nation-states to recognize the imperatives of internationalism.

After all our experience we are sure that America is the only country able to help us.

Cooperation may imply compromise, but if it brings a world advance it is a gain for each individual nation.

Foreign Policy has to be less foreign.

If the whole of the 20th century has taught us anything, it has taught us that borders must be respected.

America cannot meet this century's challenges alone; the world cannot meet them without America.

All problems in the world today are multilateral, and all these one-on-one agreements simply aren't going to do it.

Democrats should insist that a pluralistic democracy such as ours rely on bipartisanship in formulating a foreign policy based on moderation and the nuances of the human condition.

The Olympics is a time primarily for sport and celebration, but diplomacy does not stop at the door of the U.N., and for it to work, it must be sustained and consistent.

The fact is that co-operation between independent countries - to our mutual advantage - is the way of the modern world.

For future geopolitical stability and global prosperity, we need to build a culture of greater trust and understanding between China, America and the rest of the world.

I believe that our national security lies not just in protecting our borders, but in bridging divides.

On the international political landscape, there is better understanding of Pakistan's political economic and strategic issues. We aspire to promote peace and harmony with the region.

I was never convinced that war was the best system to bring democracy to the country.