The main obstacle to a stable and just world order is the United States.

The integration of Europe was very much led by a Germany that was always willing to pay a little bit extra to reach a compromise that everybody accepted, because Germany was so eager to get European support for reunification. That was called the "farsighted vision," which created the European Union.

I think it is natural that every country has to take care of its interests, but there are some interests that are common to all countries. There are some human interests, or we need also international cooperation. We've sometimes confused it with dictation.

What works for Germany can't work for the rest of Europe: No country can run a chronic surplus without others running deficits.

Most of the poverty and misery in the world is due to bad government, lack of democracy, weak states, internal strife, and so on.

An open society calls itself open to improvement. It is based on the recognition that people have divergent views and interests, and that nobody is in possession of the ultimate truth.

Well, you know, I was a human being before I became a businessman.