Heads Of State

"Until today we have had a half war. I say, had we attacked North Vietnam with a classical war, had we bombed North Vietnam continuously, had we landed in North Vietnam, the war would be over by now."

"Yes, I'm a military man, and as a military man I say that if peace fails and we want to end this war, we must bring the war to North Vietnam. In all possible ways, including landing."

"When you negotiate with the Communists, you shouldn't fix a deadline. You must not tell them that you want to repatriate the prisoners as soon as possible, to bring peace as soon as possible, otherwise they exploit you. Be patient. One must be patient with the Communists, more patient than they are."

"You say that you blame me for the fall of South Vietnam, you criticize me, everything. I let you do that. I like to see you do better than I."

"In any peace solution the final decision should be ours. Nobody can sign a cease‐fire agreement or peace settlement without the signature of the Government of the Republic of Vietnam."

"We have told the Americans, that when you talk to the Communists, if they propose this or that solution, you just receive it and take it back and show it to us. Then we would give our views and you would inform them of our views."

"Of course, I would like to go down in history as the man who brought peace."

"When democracy is recovered in Vietnam, I can say that my dream has come true. I can go back to my life. I would like to go back to my own province, my native province. That’s the best place."

"It is so easy to be an enemy of the United States, but so difficult to be a friend."

"Don't listen to what the Communists say, but look at what they do."

"Nigeria has no business being poor, we have all it takes to make Africa great."

"The Communists could only hope to win if our ally betrays us and sells us out. But our main ally will never betray us. He has invested so much blood and money."

"The lice of poor performance in government – poverty, insecurity, poor economic management, nepotism, gross dereliction of duty, condonation of misdeed – if not outright encouragement of it, lack of progress and hope for the future, lack of national cohesion and poor management of internal political dynamics and widening inequality – are very much with us today. With such lice of general and specific poor performance and crying poverty with us, our fingers will not be dry of ‘blood’.https://www.punchng.com/full-letter-obasanjo-writes-buhari-asks-president-to-halt-2019-ambition/%3famp"

"We have only one choice left to take us out of Egypt to the promised land. And that is the coalition of the concerned and the willing – ready for positive and drastic change, progress and involvement. Change that will give hope and future to all our youth and dignity and full participation to all our women.https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/256524-nigeria-needs-third-force-dislodge-buhari-obasanjo.html"

"I have always said we are not afraid of a ceasefire, but our stance is that if there is a cease‐fire it must go along with a political settlement."

"The Americans have asked us to do an impossible thing… You have asked us to do something you failed to do, with half a million powerful troops and skilled commanders, and with nearly $300 billion in expenditure over six long years."

"For Africa to move forward, Nigeria must be one of the anchor countries, if not the leading anchor country. It means that Nigeria must be good at home to be good outside. No doubt, our situation in the last decade or so had shown that we are not good enough at home; hence we are invariably absent at the table that we should be abroad.https://www.punchng.com/full-letter-obasanjo-writes-buhari-asks-president-to-halt-2019-ambition/%3famp"

"If I do not say that you were defeated by the communists in Vietnam, I must modestly say that you did not win either. But you found an honourable way out. And at present, when our army lacks weapons, ammunition, helicopters, aircraft and B-52s (bombers), you ask us to do an impossible thing, like filling up the ocean with stones…"

"Finally, it is important to move from an unproductive sanctions regime to direct dialogue between the leaders of the key global powers who are shaping the future of the world. In this regard, it is necessary to discuss ways out of the current geopolitical crisis between the representatives of the United States, China, Russia and the European Union. I am negotiating with the leaders of these states. It is necessary to build this work from a dialogue of key think tanks with a further transition to the ministerial and higher levels."

"In a short period of time, we were jointly able to build economic corridors that bypassed complex natural landscapes and geopolitical contradictions. Thanks to modern logistics and mutual understanding of states, goods from Southeast Asia can reach the cities of Northern Europe in just two weeks. At the heart of this is pragmatism and the pursuit of prosperity."

"The other former Soviet republics, except Georgia and Kyrgyzstan, were headed by communist party chiefs who restyled themselves as patriots and used their political patronage to secure themselves in power. Nursultan Nazarbaev in Kazakhstan was typical. He put his long-established group of clients in the main offices of state and gave outrageous benefit to his family as privatisation proceeded. He overrode constitutional and legal obstacles; his police used torture against dissenters. His policies blatantly discriminated in favour of individuals and groups of Kazakh nationality. In central Asia and the south Caucasus it was the same story. The new leaderships had familiar faces. The post-communist presidents and their regimes were more brutal than anything witnessed in the region since the death of Stalin."

"All of northern and northeastern Kazakhstan is actually part of southern Siberia. It is settled mostly by Russians, who, just like the other non-Kazakhs--together making up 60% of Kazakhstan's population--are being repressed in their national, cultural, business and daily life. How can a minority govern a majority? Only through duplicity and force. That's exactly what happened in the recent "elections" in Kazakhstan. Kazakh President Narsultan Nazarbayev today is regarded in the West as a great democrat. But he has already become an effective dictator."

"I have always been and remain a sincere supporter of the well-known formula – "Economy first, then politics". This principle is comprehensive, extending to both domestic and foreign policy of our country. This approach ensured consistency in all spheres of Kazakhstan's development, i.e. from economic reforms to building pragmatic relations with partners in the international arena."

"We managed to build a successful Kazakhstan state with a modern market economy on the ruins of the Soviet Union, create peace and stability within a multi-ethnic and multi-religious Kazakhstan. For the first time in our centuries-old history, international legal recognition of the Republic of Kazakhstan has been secured. Kazakhstan has been put on the world map, where it did not exist as a state. We have our own flag, anthem, coat of arms."

"The systemic transformation of the current world is a strategic challenge for our people. We must be ready to accept them."

"The election campaign and the elections themselves will give a comprehensive picture of which political force enjoys the trust of citizens. We are in close touch with the people and are fully cognizant of their concerns, their needs and aspirations. We will come up with programs aimed at strengthening Armenia’s security and developing the country in a way to ensure the population’s well-being. I am confident that our society will be able to form legitimate authorities, and we, in our contacts with the citizens, will present our programs and goals for coming years."

"Armenian-Russian strategic allied relations are quite rich and extensive. They rely upon the historical proximity of our friendly peoples. The nature of these relations does not depend on the outcome of the early elections."

"You know, we have political tensions at home, but the truth is that the calls made by the opposition have not received wide publicity in society. And I think that the issue of power, which was formed by the people, can only be decided by the will of the people. The fact is that the calls made by the opposition do not receive support from the Armenian society. This needs to be stated."

"I call on all our compatriots not to give in to provocations and to unite around a government that is determined to live up to the task of getting the country out of this situation, while guaranteeing that no one can usurp the people’s legitimate power against plundering the country and returning it to a whirlpool of corruption... Our country does have a future, and we must do everything to make this difficult junction an important milestone on the way to that future. And we must learn lessons from our collective mistakes."

"I call on all citizens who understand what is happening to prepare for revenge, to prepare for revenge against these corrupt oligarch scoundrels․․․ Yes, we did not do the right thing. We have not dealt correctly with the people who robbed this country, with those who stole the soldiers' bread, those who stole the soldiers' weapons, those who stole the citizens' dignity, I apologize for that. I call on all citizens who understand what we are talking about, to prepare for revenge, because, yes, we will take revenge for our soldiers from them, we will take revenge for our lost homeland from them... the time has come for the citizen's revenge!"

"The most important thing that we changed was the people’s perception of their own role, because before the revolution the most part of Armenian citizens considered that they did not decide anything: nothing depended on their position, but we made our citizens believe that their position, their voice is the most important factor in our political and social life, and that is the most important change we have made."

"We are now in process of getting new people involved in the Armenian economy. We are going to guarantee the equality, and now we can say that all people, all citizens are equal before the law in Armenia. We are going to make economic reforms to liberalize our economy, to make it more attractive to foreign and domestic investors. How are we going to do that? We are going to guarantee the security of any investment. We are going to create high-quality infrastructure, and we are going to make people believe and engage in the economy, create their own businesses, and to have a real opportunity to become successful and make the country more prosperous."

"As any democracy, we are devoted to exclusively peaceful solution for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and it is very important because I am sure that democracy is the most important factor to create peace in our region. I am sure that there is no democracy willing to start a war or use force for solving problems."

"Some forces are trying to engage us into political bargaining and propose me to become prime minister but ensure and guarantee the continuation of the existing system. And for me, my goal isn’t to become prime minister. My goal is bring real changes to Armenia."

"We will propose the concept of a working country, we will turn the country into a construction site again. Creating tens of thousands of jobs every year is a priority. We did it once, we will do it again."

"The fight for the purity and efficiency of the state apparatus will be the best tool in the fight against corruption. This will be concrete work, not the slogans that the authorities are guided by today. Lying will be excluded in the state system. We have become a world of lies, we must start by eliminating those lies."

"Artsakh is Armenia, full stop."

"We will build a country that every Armenian can be proud of. We understand that no one will ensure our security, the development of our country and economy for us. Yes, we have allies, friends, but no one will do for us what we ourselves must do. They will be with us, they will help us, but our fate must be in our hands. We will build everything that I said in my speech. We will bring dignified peace and prosperity. Rest assured everything will be fine. Thank you."

"An unduly unfair peace cannot be lasting and sustainable. I want to end this conflict, and we must find a solution which which will be fair."

"I have extensive management experience in crisis situations, accumulated experience, and knowledge in the security and defense system. I have experience in overcoming the economic crisis. The current dangers and the accumulated experience and knowledge practically coincide"

"What are we going to do when we come to power? First of all, it is necessary to assess the scale of the damage done to the country in all spheres: economy, legal system, education, science, etc. This is necessary to plan the next steps. Anti-crisis steps must be taken to stem the further degradation of security and governance. We must stop the economic downturn, we must restore the country's creditworthiness and predictability. We have long lost our reputation as a reliable partner in the international arena."

"In reality, all experts were voicing that the policy led in Armenia made the war inevitable. Different expert circles insisted we were not ready and we night face a controversial and severe war."

"All my close friends ask me ‘Why are you doing this [running for office]?’. And I always tell myself: ‘If not me, then who?’ I asked this question to myself in 1992, 1997 and I'm asking myself the same question now, today. It feels like it's my destiny to fix what others broke."

"It is fundamentally important that people immediately feel the changes in the country, and people will feel it. We will not give empty promises, the key to our success is professionalism, experience, hard work, discipline and love for the country."

"This is a new Sardarapat, and we all should be prepared to devote ourselves to a single mission that we call final victory. Each of us must be ready to be on the forefront of that victory. We will win! We are sure to win! Rest assured that victory will be on our side!"

"I am trying to understand how the formula “Artsakh is Armenia, full stop” can be combined with a solution that should satisfy all parties. The formula of these authorities implies that either Karabakh should abandon the idea of ​​independence, or Azerbaijan should agree with the independence of Karabakh."

"I recently made a parallel between the Munich Agreement and our situation. Before the outbreak of World War II, the European powers thought that by ceding Czechoslovakia to Hitler they could satisfy his appetite and avoid war in Europe. And what happened as a result: Hitler swallowed Czechoslovakia, the Czech Republic, and as the other saying goes, eating only arouses one’s appetite. If the European leaders had not surrendered the Czech Republic, and a war started, journalists like you would say, “Is there anything you could have done better? For instance, why did you not surrender the Czech Republic? While the questioned leaders would say, yes, we should have been a little more flexible in the case of the Czech Republic. They turned out to be more flexible, and what is the outcome?"

"Today we have not only a government seeking revenge in Azerbaijan, but also a similarly minded Azerbaijani people. And when these two circumstances combine, the danger of a renewed war increases."

"Nothing has changed in my position. We have always said and keep saying the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh must be resolved only by peaceful means. I said something else, that Armenia has always been and is ready - and Karabakh, too, is ready - for a peaceful, diplomatic resolution of the issue, but we have one problem: the compromise to which Armenia agrees is no longer something to which Azerbaijan agrees."

"We are entering a new stage of the development of the statehood. The radical changes in the domains of public construction, judicial system, market economy, freedoms have become irreversible, and, with cooperation between the executive and legislative branches, we must bring all these to their natural development. The further promotion of democracy and continuation of the reforms have no alternatives. In this direction, the efficient work of the Parliament and its constructive attitude can greatly stimulate the positive processes. As a result, Armenia may come out in the world as a front runner in the region as far as permanent democratic values and stability are concerned. Everything depends on our level of responsibility and us. The accord in society, political dialogue and constructive cooperation are to become the credo of our people in the upcoming four years."