“Why should we be closer to the Soviets? Because the Americans have challenged us. America is involved in a conspiracy [against the Arab world], primarily because of its policy toward Israel. In our view, whoever is against the Americans stands with us. The enemy of your enemy is your friend.”

“(Note: The following was written in 2003, before the full implication of US military commitment in Afghanistan and Iraq could be fully appreciated. The passage also predates US drone attacks against targets in Pakistan and Yemen - to say nothing of Israeli affairs since 2003. It is unknown if and how the author's comments would change if he were writing the same today.)The value of Israel to the United States as a strategic asset has been much disputed. There have been some in the United States who view Israel as a major strategic ally in the region and the one sure bastion against both external and regional enemies. Others have argued that Israel, far from being a strategic asset, has been a strategic liability, by embittering U.S. relations with the Arab world and causing the failure of U.S. policies in the region.But if one compares the record of American policy in the Middle East with that of other regions, one is struck not by its failure but by its success. There is, after all, no Vietnam in the Middle East, no Cuba or Nicaragua or El Salvador, not even an Angola. On the contrary, throughout the successive crises that have shaken the region, there has always been an imposing political, economic, and cultural American presence, usually in several countries - and this, until the Gulf War of 1991, without the need for any significant military intervention. And even then, their presence was needed to rescue the victims of an inter-Arab aggression, unrelated to either Israelis or Palestinians. (99)”

“My view is that you don't just talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies, as well. And the diplomacy involves talking to your enemies. You don't reward your enemies necessarily, by talking to them if you're tough and you know what you're doing. You don't appease them. Talking to an enemy is not, in my view, appeasement. I made 15 trips to Syria in 1990-1991 at a time when Syria was on the list of countries who are state sponsors of terrorism. And the 16th trip, guess what? Lo and behold, Syria changed 25 years of policy and agreed for the first time in history to come sit at the table with Israel, which is what Israel wanted at the time. And, thereby, implicitly recognized Israel's right to exist. Now, all I'm saying is that would never have happened if we hadn't been sufficiently dedicated that we were going to keep at it.”

“The challenge now is for us to wake up to the reality of the existence and malevolent action of the devil in our world and take action against him, our enemy since the time of our fist parents.”

“When Libya fought against the Italian occupation, all the Arabs supported the Libyan mujahideen.We Arabs never occupied any country.Well, we occupied Andalusia unjustly, and they drove us out, but since then, we Arabs have not occupied any country. It is our countries that are occupied.Palestine is occupied, Iraq is occupied, and as for the UAE islands...It is not in the best interest of the Arabs for hostility to develop between them and Iran, Turkey, or any of these nations.By no means is it in our interest to turn Iran against us.If there really is a problem, we should decide here to refer this issue to the international court of Justice.This is the proper venue for the resolution of such problems.We should decide to refer the issue of the disputed UAE islands to the International Court of Justice, and we should accept whatever it rules.One time you say this is occupied Arab land, and then you say...This is not clear, and it causes confusion.80% of the people of the Gulf are Iranians.The ruling families are Arab, but the rest are Iranian. The entire people is Iranian.This is a mess. Iran cannot be avoided.Iran is a Muslim neighbour, and it is not in our interes to become enemies.What is the reason for the invasion and destruction of Iraq, and for killing of one million Iraqis?Let our American friends answer this question:Why Iraq? What is the reason? Is Bin Laden an Iraqi? No he is not.Were those who attacked New York Iraqis? No, they were not.were those who attacked the Pentagon Iraqis? No, they were not.Were there WMDs in Iraq? No, there were not.Even if iraq did have WMDs - Pakistan and India have nuclear bombs, and so do China, Russia, Britain, France and America.Should all these countries be destroyed?Fine, let's destroy all the countries that have WMDs.Along comes a foreign power, occupies an Arab country, and hangs its president, and we all sit on the sidelines, laughing.Why didn't they investigate the hanging of Saddam Hussein?How can a POW be hanged - a president of an Arab country and a member of the Arab League no less!I'm not talking about the policies of Saddam Hussein, or the disagreements we had with him.We all had poitlical disagreements with him and we have such disagreements among ourselves here.We share nothing, beyond this hall.Why won't there be an investigation into the killing of Saddam Hussein?An entire Arab leadership was executed by hanging, yet we sit on the sidelines. Why?Any one of you might be next. Yes.America fought alongside Saddam Hussein against Khomeini.He was their friend. Cheney was a friend of Saddam Hussein.Rumsfeld, the US Defense Secretary at the time Iraq was destroyed, was a close friend of Saddam Hussein.Ultimately, they sold him out and hanged him.You are friends of America - let's say that ''we'' are, not ''you'' - but one of these days, America may hang us.Brother 'Amr Musa has an idea which he is enthusiastic. He mentioned it in his report.He says that the Arabs have the right to use nuclear power for peaceful purposes, and that there should be an Arab nuclear program.The Arabs have this right.They even have the right to have the right to have a nuclear program for other...But Allah prevails...But who are those Arabs whom you say should have united nuclear program?We are the enemies of one another, I'm sad to say.We all hate one another, we deceive one another, we gloat at the misfortune of one another, and we conspire against one another.Our intelligence agencies conspire against one another, instead of defending us against the enemy.We are the enemies of one another, and an Arab's enemy is another Arab's friend.”

“The reason the founders chafed at the idea of an American standing army and vested the power of war making in the cumbersome legislature was not to disadvantage us against future enemies, but to disincline us toward war as a general matter... With citizen-soldiers, with the certainty of a vigorous political debate over the use of a military subject to politicians' control, the idea was for us to feel it- uncomfortably- every second we were at war. But after a generation or two of shedding the deliberate political encumbrances to war that they left us... war making has become almost an autonomous function of the American state. It never stops.”