Ehud Barak

Israel is the strongest nation in the Middle East, but we have to apply our strength wisely. ”

Israel's secret services are allowed to profile. ”

As long as in this territory west of the Jordan river there is only one political entity called Israel, it is going to be either non-Jewish or non-democratic. If this bloc of millions of Palestinians cannot vote, that will be an apartheid state. ”

I have acquired - some would say deservedly - quite a few rivals: former Israeli politicians, some of whom at their height were stars beloved by large parts of the public. But today, they aren't in politics, and when they sit alone in their room, they say to themselves that Barak is the one who showed them out the door. ”

Once Iraq becomes a nuclear power, the very decision to go to war against it would become a totally different ball game. ”

I delivered lectures, and I was also a consultant for international companies in finance, both private equity and big venture capital funds. ”

War is no picnic. Wars should be prevented, and if you can't prevent them, you have to put them off. ”

I cannot penetrate the soul of Arafat. I cannot know in advance whether, behind all the masks, he's the kind of leader who can reach an agreement or whether he wants to be the Moses of the Palestinians, staying in front of the river and not crossing into the promised land. ”

When an army doesn't want to fight, you don't need much experience to win. ”

They say in the Middle East a pessimist is simply an optimist with experience. ”