The Russians are not going to do what we want them to do because we want them to do it.
Yes, Israel's our ally. But, are the Palestinians our enemy? No, they are not.
But there is scant evidence to tie Saddam to terrorist organizations, and even less to the Sept. 11 attacks.
I think above all, what we need with Iran is patience.
Much of what we know about mathematics and trade comes from the Arabs. Then came stagnation, and now they're the West's whipping boy. This is a problem that cannot be solved overnight, and certainly not militarily.
The radical elements in Islam are very dangerous. They want to achieve a return to the Islamic purity of the Middle Ages.
First of all, I think the Saudis are deeply concerned about the collapse of negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians and the resumption of conflict.
If you look back at the first Gulf war, the Arabs sent forces, they sent money. So their interests in Iraq are clear, but they're nowhere to be seen now. Why? Because right now, it's dangerous to be seen as supporting the United States.
Simply killing everyone who is already a terrorist today won't solve the problem.
I'm afraid that the United States is more isolated today than at any other time in my memory.
To sum up, the position we took was that since we didn't know the internal situation in Iraq nor Saddam Hussein, that our best bet was to take counsel from the people who did know him and who did deal with him.
I think America has to do more than be a broker now. Because both the Palestinians are weak and Israel is very weak.
But figuring out Saddam Hussein was one our greatest mysteries. He marched to his own drummer and frequently as this unfolded he made decisions which were sometimes inexplicable to us and sometimes didn't look very smart.
The radical elements in Islam are very dangerous.
If Iraq were to descend into chaos, the Europeans would feel the effects just as much as we would.
Because national borders are eroding, because of the growth of non-state actors. It's a different kind of a world. We are tied down by a tiny little country - Iraq. It's amazing, given the disparity in military economic strength. It's a world where most of the big problems spill over national boundaries, and there are new kinds of actors and we're feeling our way as to how to deal with them.
But, if you believe we should go around the world overturning regimes to make little United States, I don't agree with that, because I don't think we're capable of doing that.
The Iraqi elections were an important first step.
Many Sunnis, who are still stuck in the Saddam era mindset and believe Iraq belongs to them, are trying to prevent a new country from developing at all.
Who is the guarantor, if there is one, of a more stable world? It's the United States.
It is beyond dispute that Saddam Hussein is a menace.
The Europeans must finally understand the incredible shock triggered by the attacks of September 11.
The Iraqis need help establishing a government. We have to provide them with security.
After all, we didn't bring democracy to Germany in 1945; Hitler destroyed democracy there first.
My point was that removing Saddam should not have been our highest priority. Fighting terrorism should have been our number one concern, followed by the Palestinian peace process.
