I’m afraid that the United States is more isolated today than at any other time in my memory.
BRENT SCOWCROFTI’m afraid that the United States is more isolated today than at any other time in my memory.
BRENT SCOWCROFTIf Iraq were to descend into chaos, the Europeans would feel the effects just as much as we would.
BRENT SCOWCROFTSince the days of Peter the Great, Russians have been maybe Europeans who didn’t share in the enlightenment and the reformation, or are they Mongol Asians with the European veneer. And they’ve gone back and forth.
BRENT SCOWCROFTAmerica has never seen itself as a national state like all others, but rather as an experiment in human freedom and democracy.
BRENT SCOWCROFTSaddam’s ouster will not necessarily lead to the same result, since Iraq lacks democratic traditions. Democracy doesn’t just consist of holding elections.
BRENT SCOWCROFTWe have not been forthcoming about explaining a security relationship for the region, in which Iran can feel secure and thus maybe willing to do something.
BRENT SCOWCROFTThe art of diplomacy is to take an opportunity and turn it into something.
BRENT SCOWCROFTMuch 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.
BRENT SCOWCROFTRussia right now is searching for its soul. It’s trying to figure out what it really is.
BRENT SCOWCROFTTo 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.
BRENT SCOWCROFTBut the central point is that any campaign against Iraq, whatever the strategy, cost and risks, is certain to divert us for some indefinite period from our war on terrorism.
BRENT SCOWCROFTThe Iraqis need help establishing a government. We have to provide them with security.
BRENT SCOWCROFTInformation technology has politicized the world’s population.
BRENT SCOWCROFTMy 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.
BRENT SCOWCROFTBut, 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.
BRENT SCOWCROFTProgress is only possible if the United States and its allies work together.
BRENT SCOWCROFT