One can justify provocative moves if they serve an important strategic goal. — John Mearsheimer Goals Copy Share Image
In the eyes of Russian leaders, E.U. expansion is a stalking horse for NATO expansion. — 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
Convincing adversaries that they cannot achieve quick and decisive wins deters wars. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
When World War II started on September 1, 1939, the German army contained 3.74 million soldiers and 103 divisions. — John Mearsheimer Army Copy Share Image
Containment is an alternative to war against a rising China. Nevertheless, war is always a possibility. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
The links between Ukraine and America continued growing under the Biden administration. — John Mearsheimer Administration Copy Share Image
In the anarchic world of international politics, it is better to be Godzilla than Bambi. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Great-power politics is tragic because the structure of the international system forces states that seek only to be secure nonetheless to act… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Despite its huge population, booming economy and growing nuclear arsenal, President Clinton, like his predecessors, refuses to show India the respect it… — John Mearsheimer Allies Copy Share Image
Even if we somehow destroyed all of Iran's nuclear capability, they will simply rebuild it, in locations that are harder to find… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
A critically important issue when talking about America's terrorism problem is the matter of how U.S. support for Israel's brutal treatment of… — John Mearsheimer America Copy Share Image
Mr Putin surely knows that the costs of conquering and occupying large amounts of territory in eastern Europe would be prohibitive for… — John Mearsheimer Costs Copy Share Image
As we learned during the Cold War, the presence of massive nuclear arsenals does not stop great powers from worrying about conventional… — John Mearsheimer Cold war Copy Share Image
The liberal tradition has its roots in the Enlightenment, that period in the eighteenth-century Europe when intellectuals and political leaders had a… — John Mearsheimer Better place Copy Share Image
The U.S., over the course of the 1990s and the first decade-and-a-half of the 2000s, went to great places to make China… — John Mearsheimer China Copy Share Image
As the Cold War came to a close, Soviet leaders preferred that U.S. forces remain in Europe and NATO stay intact, an… — John Mearsheimer Cold Copy Share Image
NATO expansion, E.U. expansion, and turning Ukraine and Georgia and other countries into liberal democracies were all about creating a giant zone… — John Mearsheimer Eastern europe Copy Share Image
The Russians have intensely disliked but tolerated substantial NATO expansion, including the accession of Poland and the Baltic countries. But when NATO… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
The American expeditionary force would easily rout the Taliban in a conventional war - which is why there would not be one.… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
For all good sorts of security reasons, Israel wants to remain the only nuclear power in the Middle East, but a nuclear-armed… — John Mearsheimer Cybersecurity Copy Share Image
Someone who is Irish can have a loyalty to Ireland. The problem is when you raise the subject of dual loyalty, many… — John Mearsheimer Ireland Copy Share Image
The best way for any state to deter a rival from using its nuclear arsenal for political gain is to have its… — John Mearsheimer Age Copy Share Image
Nuclear weapons are an excellent deterrent against aggression, and India lives in a dangerous neighborhood. Since gaining independence in 1947, it has… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Georgia and Ukraine are not just states in Russia's neighborhood; they are on its doorstep. — John Mearsheimer Georgia Copy Share Image
I believe that the existing power structures in Europe and Northeast Asia are not sustainable through 2020. — John Mearsheimer Asia Copy Share Image
The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies. — John Mearsheimer Armies Copy Share Image
China, in short has the potential to be considerably more powerful than even the United States. — John Mearsheimer China Copy Share Image
Important benefits often accrue to states that behave in an unexpected way. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Great powers must be forever vigilant and never subordinate survival to any other goal, including prosperity. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Military might is built on economic might. You need an economic foundation to build a really powerful military. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
Afghanistan is ideally suited for guerrilla warfare, as the Soviets discovered in the 1980s. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
If you take the long view, Australia has never been able to sit on the fence when there was a threat in… — John Mearsheimer Asia Copy Share Image
I believe it is no accident that the world is populated with nation-states. — John Mearsheimer Accident Copy Share Image
I think the United States is a thoroughly nationalist country. — John Mearsheimer Country Copy Share Image
People who believe their critical faculties can help them find moral truth are deluding themselves. — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
To be sure, no one will miss such by-products of the Cold War as the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. — John Mearsheimer Cold Copy Share Image
Because there is no world government to protect states from one another, major powers are acutely sensitive to threats - especially near… — John Mearsheimer Government Copy Share Image
I'm a realist, and I thought from the get-go that NATO expansion was going to lead to one heck of a lot… — John Mearsheimer Copy Share Image
In fact, as soon as it declared independence, Ukraine should have been quietly encouraged to fashion its own nuclear deterrent. — John Mearsheimer Fashion Copy Share Image
