University politics make me long for the simplicity of the Middle East.

There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.

Any fact that needs to be disclosed should be put out now or as quickly as possible, because otherwise the bleeding will not end.

One theory is that we will make war look so attractive that we undermine the deterrent. That's Never Never Land. What we have now would have been enough to deter Hitler. But we are talking in a different order of reality.

Leaders are responsible not for running public opinion polls but for the consequences of their actions.

Diplomats operate through deadlock, which is the way by which two sides can test each other's determination. Even if they have egos for it few heads of government have the time to resolve stalemates, their meetings are too short and the demands of protocol too heavy.

We have three things in common: Irish wives, the ability to speak for 17 minutes without a verb, and the fact that we both speak with an accent.