When it becomes a bloody reality, we have to come together and look at what can be done to return to the order of peace, ... There is no alternative to it.
Shimon PeresRead
The foes now are universal - poverty, famine, religious radicalization, desertification, drugs, proliferation of nuclear weapons, ecological devastation. They threaten all nations, just as science and information are the potential friends of all nations. Classical diplomacy and strategy were aimed at identifying enemies and confronting them. Now they have to identify dangers, global or local, and tackle them before they become disasters.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the need to unite against common global threats instead of traditional enemy-centric diplomacy.
Shimon Peres reflects on the evolving landscape of global challenges, asserting that contemporary threats like poverty, famine, and environmental degradation are universal, impacting all nations. He contrasts this with previous diplomatic approaches that focused on identifying enemies, suggesting that modern diplomacy must instead concentrate on recognizing and tackling shared dangers collectively to prevent catastrophic outcomes.
Themes
Global ChallengesDiplomacyCooperationSecurityEnvironment
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about international relations at a diplomatic conference.
More from Shimon Peres
All quotes →I didn't plan to be a politician. The founder of our country, David Ben-Gurion, called me from the kibbutz to serve in the underground. We were short of manpower, short of arms. I was 24 years old. I was supposed to serve my country for one or two years. I am 89 years old this year, and I keep going.
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The United States is the only power in history that became great by giving and not by taking. I think the crisis was when the United States had more money than ideas. Money doesn't produce money. Ideas produce money.
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The problem of the Middle East is poverty more than politics.
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The Iranian regime suppresses its own people as well as others in the region. It prevents peace by sponsoring terror globally. With the ultimate weapon that it is deceptively developing, the regime aims to gain hegemony over the entire Middle East and hold the world's economy hostage.
Shimon PeresRead
Early in the morning, I fell in love with the girl that later on became my wife. At that time, we were so naive. I wanted to charm her, so I read her Capital by Marx. I thought somehow she would be convinced by the strength of his criticism about capital.
Shimon PeresRead
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