Terrorism needs to be de-legitimized in the way that slavery has been. Doing so will make governments and individuals think twice before becoming a party to terrorism; it should also make it less difficult to garner support for international action against those who nevertheless carry it out.
— Richard N. Haass
Weapons of mass destruction - nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons - are just that, and no cause can excuse their use.
What countries must do to join the World Trade Organization is precisely what they must do to become productive and democratic: accept the rule of law, reduce corruption, and become open, accountable, and transparent.
Middle East history is replete with examples of missed and lost chances to make peace.
It is neither feasible nor desirable for Europe to establish itself as a geopolitical equal or competitor of the U.S.
No country can succeed if it denies itself the talents of half of its people.
Democracy requires an informed citizenry able to question its government.
Security is the absolute precondition for sustainable recovery from conflict; without it, people cannot rebuild their country or return to school or work.
Not every threat to America's national interests can be addressed with military power.
Americans never would alter the way entitlement programs are funded or education administered without serious study and widespread debate.
In a world in which the United States does less, whatever set of calculations, other countries will tend to calculate - to move in one of two ways. Either they will assuage or, to use a more loaded term, appease the strongest power in the neighborhood with all the consequences of that, or they will determine to take matters into their own hands.
The United States is not just another country. It has more capacity and potential to influence the world than any other country - and no other country has the resources and mindset to lead a world that is not on autopilot.
Indeed, the big U.S. error after 9/11 was to treat Pakistan as if it were an ally. With an ally, it is possible to assume a large degree of policy overlap. With Pakistan, no such assumption can be made.
Russia may well be willing to stop interfering in Eastern Ukraine in exchange for a degree of sanctions relief if it could be assured that ethnic Russians there would not face reprisals.
The vote in the United Kingdom in favor of leaving the E.U. attested to the loss of elite influence.
Trump's foreign policy is not so much immoral as it is amoral.
Americans were happy to buy vast quantities of relatively inexpensive Chinese manufactured goods, demand for which provided jobs for the tens of millions of Chinese who moved from poor agricultural areas to new or rapidly expanding cities.
No one pursuing reasonable goals and who is prepared to compromise can argue that terrorism is his or his group's only option.
The benefits of freer trade, such as job creation, lower inflation, and greater consumer choice, are often invisible or only partly visible.
Trade is the all-but-forgotten weapon in the battle against poverty, but it can provide more help to the poor than aid can.
In a global world, what happens within one country can all too easily affect others.
Europeans must shed their illusions about what they can accomplish in the world on their own. Loose talk about resurrecting a multi-polar world is just that - loose talk.
Unrestrained zeal to make the world better could make it worse. Promoting democracy must be undertaken with humility, care, and wisdom.
For too long, America tolerated a 'democratic exception' in the Muslim Middle East. As long as governments were friendly and backed regional stability, there was no need for outsiders to encourage representative government.
An open, market-oriented, and peaceful Iraq could also advance reform and growth across the entire region.
America's armed forces are an essential background to much of what the U.S. accomplishes internationally.
Paradigm shifts, particularly in diplomacy and security issues, are, by definition, major undertakings.
Difficult choices, unlike red wine, rarely improve with age.
American presidents get to make lots of choices, with one critical exception: what awaits them in the in-box on top of the desk in the Oval Office.
It is true that the U.S. could and should have been more generous as Russia made its painful transition to a market economy in the 1990s.
Nationalism is a tool increasingly used by leaders to bolster their authority, especially amid difficult economic and political conditions.
The United States, working closely with the United Kingdom and others, established the liberal world order in the wake of World War II. The goal was to ensure that the conditions that had led to two world wars in 30 years would never again arise.
The U.S. does not want to live under the shadow of a North Korea that possesses long-range missiles capable of delivering nuclear payloads to American cities. At the same time, the U.S. has no appetite for a war that would prove costly by every measure.
Modern terrorism is too destructive to be tolerated, much less supported.
A China that trades extensively with the U.S. and its Asian neighbors will think twice before it pursues any policy that would place those relationships at risk. Likewise, trade between India and Pakistan could contribute to the normalization of ties between these long-estranged neighbors.
Russian membership in the World Trade Organization has the potential to strengthen the rule of law, combat corruption, and give Russia a stake in better relations with the outside world.
We all have some basic obligation to one another.
Americans, for their part, must accept that a strong Europe will not be content to simply do America's bidding.
History shows that societies where opportunity is safeguarded tend to be societies that are good international citizens.
It is difficult to think of a foreign policy issue that preoccupies and polarizes world opinion as much as the Palestinian question.
Success in foreign policy, as in carpentry, requires the right tools for the job.
Indeed, in foreign policymaking, inconsistency is often a virtue. I speak not of principles but of policy.
If old American alliance commitments don't count for as much, countries will, in some cases, then say, 'Well, we've got to militarize in certain ways and act more independently.'
It is in the interest of Americans to find out what those wanting to be president think about a wide range of challenges and what they might do about them. We should want to get their take on the wisdom of past decisions, what they agree and disagree with, and why.
Bad situations can always get worse.
If Trump, for whatever reason, continues to coddle Russia, then Congress, the media, foundations, and academics should publicly detail the corruption that characterizes Putin's rule.
The rise of populism is in part a response to stagnating incomes and job loss, owing mostly to new technologies but widely attributed to imports and immigrants.
It is important to signal that opposition to the use of any weapon of mass destruction is both deep and broad.
The abolition of the presidential term limit and President Xi Jinping's concentration of power have come as an unwelcome surprise to many.
