States care about relative wealth, because economic might is the foundation of military might. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Simply put, the most powerful state is the one that prevails in a dispute. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
In an ideal world, where there are only good states, power would be largely irrelevant. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
A state's potential power is based on the size of its population and the level of its wealth. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Offensive realism predicts that the United States will send its army across the Atlantic when there is a potential hegemon in Europe… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
The ideal situation for any state is to experience sharp economic growth while its rivals' economies grow slowly or hardly at all. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Important benefits often accrue to states that behave in an unexpected way. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
China, in short has the potential to be considerably more powerful than even the United States. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Since the mid-1990s, Russian leaders have adamantly opposed NATO enlargement, and in recent years, they have made it clear that they would not stand… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
The unpleasant truth is that some borders are untenable and preserving them causes conflict, not peace. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Great powers react harshly when distant rivals project military power into their neighborhood, much less attempt to make a country on their border an… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
When the United States worked to contain the Soviet Union during the Cold War, we went to enormous lengths to get as many countries… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
The central aim of American foreign policy has traditionally been to dominate the western hemisphere while not permitting another great power to dominate Europe… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Nuclear weapons are the ideal middle-class weapons for Americans. They provide massive amounts of deterrence on the cheap. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Erosion of sovereignty is one more reason a powerful state with a liberal foreign policy ends up fighting never ending wars and fostering militarism… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Simply put, the most powerful state is the one that prevails in a dispute. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
What disappoints me about Obama is that, when he came into office, he gave the impression he was going to reduce America's global commitments,… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
