The most striking thing is that even before Osama bin Laden was killed, he seemed largely irrelevant to the Arab Spring.

The Western alliance should have supported the Sunni opposition against the Assad regime from the beginning. As far as Iraq is concerned, if it had stayed stable the way it was in 2008, IS would not have been able to expand in Iraq the way they did. The mistake was that Barack Obama withdrew the armed forces from Iraq too fast.

If a cat sits on a hot stove once, it will never sit on a cold one either.

I think all foreigners should stop interfering in the internal affairs of Iraq. Those who want to come and help are welcome. Those who come to interfere and destroy are not.

To stay back from an intervention is not always a good solution.

Public action should seek to expand the set of opportunities of those who have the least voice and fewest resources and capabilities.

I've met quite a few dictators up close and personal in my life.