Ehud Barak

We are living in an open world. There is a freedom of speech and, clearly, freedom of speculation. ”

One of the lessons learned in the Middle East is to never try to anticipate the other side's moves. ”

Israel fits into the zeitgeist of our era. It is true that there are demographic threats to its existence. That is why a separation from the Palestinians is a compelling imperative. ”

I don't think that the Iranians, even if they got the bomb, they're going to drop it immediately on some neighbor. They fully understand what might follow. They're radical, but not total mishuginas. ”

Russians in top positions always told me, 'We don't want to deal with our allies the way that the Americans dealt with Mubarak,' which is a very live example in the minds of many. ”

The Palestinian Authority cannot hold the stick at both ends: to incite violence, to participate in it, and to tell the world how - what kind of underdog they are. ”

Saddam Hussein has set an example of defiance, especially against the first President Bush, that other Arab leaders cannot and should not emulate; the example leads only to empty gestures and developmental stagnation, both of which the Arab nations have had enough of already. ”

Prime Minister Menachem Begin ordered the destruction of an Iraqi nuclear reactor near Baghdad in 1981. This action delayed an Iraqi bomb by at least 15 years. The whole world condemned Israel - only to realize later how farsighted it had been. ”

There is a need to accept a limited disruption of civil liberties in order to penetrate terror. ”

With the globalization, it's difficult for governments to impose decisions on private companies. ”