I don’t know if, at the end of the day, how brave Saddam Hussein would be if he were stripped of his bodyguards and everything else. – Richard Armitage
True satisfaction and true justice, in my belief, will only come for Americans, and for that matter now for Spaniards and Turks and Saudis and Moroccans, when we put an end to terrorism. – Richard Armitage
The war we are fighting today against terrorism is a multifaceted fight. We have to use every tool in our toolkit to wage this war – diplomacy, finance, intelligence, law enforcement, and of course, military power – and we are developing new tools as we go along. – Richard Armitage
There is a growing recognition about China as a power in the ascent, and there is a question out there about what China will do with their new ascension. – Richard Armitage
As far as this citizen is concerned, the decision to commit men and women, who are also sons and daughters, to combat is an extraordinarily important one, and not to be done to just feel good; to be done to absolutely accomplish a mission. – Richard Armitage
What could be better in al-Qaeda’s mind than to have India and Pakistan going at each other? What more to further their aims? – Richard Armitage
Let’s face it, the Obama administration was handed a pretty poor deal from the previous administration. – Richard Armitage
I think that although we say we don’t want to be the policeman of the world and et cetera, when 911 is dialed, it’s the United States that has to answer the call. – Richard Armitage
U.S. assistance provides the Jordanian government needed flexibility to pursue policies that are of critical importance to U.S. national security and to foreign policy objectives in the Middle East. – Richard Armitage
The development of weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to carry them would be a very destabilizing effect, should Iran be able to accomplish that. – Richard Armitage
Iran has interest in seeing that the Shia population of Iraq basically adhere to a line that comes from Iran. – Richard Armitage
I think that Vietnam, many of us who served in Vietnam thought that was very wasteful, and to what end? To what end? What were we really there for? What were we really fighting for? – Richard Armitage
You know, there’s a real irony in U.S. assistance programs. First of all, I think it’s misnamed. We’re not so much trying to help people as we’re trying to help ourselves. So let’s be clear about this. So these are – in my view, they’re cold calculations of national security and not aid programs. – Richard Armitage
Whenever you’re out of town, no matter modern communications, you feel a little bit out of touch. – Richard Armitage
I would not suggest the U.S. should sit down with the North Koreans bilaterally immediately after they’ve fired missiles – because the appearance is that you reward bad behavior. But if North Korea behaves for some period of time, I would pretty much favor direct talks. – Richard Armitage
I think there was a pretty smooth hand-off from the administration of President Clinton to the administration of President Bush, particularly in the counterterrorism area. The reason I say that is because there was, for transitions, I think a stunning continuity. – Richard Armitage
Secretary Clinton has dramatically changed the face of U.S. foreign policy globally for the good. But I wish she had been unleashed more by the White House. – Richard Armitage
We’ve had Saudis and Jordanians and Pakistanis who have – and Syrians – who have been involved in armed attacks against coalition forces in Iraq. – Richard Armitage
There are ways to pursue political change. In a democracy, it’s through the ballot box. There are other ways, and many democracies have many different systems of democracy. – Richard Armitage
I think, as a general matter, clearly, the United States globally supports the development of democracy and the democratic yearnings of all people. – Richard Armitage
I think most conflicts do end with negotiated settlements; some don’t, but most do. – Richard Armitage
