--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Reconciling with an adversary that can be…" description: "\"Reconciling with an adversary that can be as brutal as the Taliban sounds distasteful, even unimaginable. And diplomacy would be easy if we only had to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/025/hillary-clinton-51_adversaries_reconciling-with-an-adversary-that-can-b_657021.jpg" --- # Reconciling with an adversary that can be as brutal as the… ![“Reconciling with an adversary that can be as brutal as the Taliban sounds distasteful, even unimaginable. And diplomacy would be easy if we only had to talk to our friends. But that is not how one makes peace.” quote by Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/025/hillary-clinton-51_adversaries_reconciling-with-an-adversary-that-can-b_657021.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/025/hillary-clinton-51_adversaries_reconciling-with-an-adversary-that-can-b_657021.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/025/hillary-clinton-51_adversaries_reconciling-with-an-adversary-that-can-b_657021.jpg) > “Reconciling with an adversary that can be as brutal as the Taliban sounds distasteful, even unimaginable. And diplomacy would be easy if we only had to talk to our friends. But that is not how one makes peace.” [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Peace with a hostile group requires confronting harsh realities, not just easy dialogue with allies. **In simple terms:** Peace demands confronting tough enemies, not just friends. Key Takeaway Engage with adversaries directly. Themes peace diplomacy conflict resolution Mood analytical serious Type political philosophical When to use this quote - peace talks - conflict mediation - international relations Key Concepts hardship negotiation strategic patience Questions to Reflect On - What steps can bridge the gap with adversaries? - How do we balance dialogue with allies and enemies? A Different Perspective May underestimate the difficulty of reconciliation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adversaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversaries/) [Brutal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brutal/) [Diplomacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diplomacy/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Making peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-peace/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Peacebuilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peacebuilding/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) ## Related quotes > [But here too it should be noted that the President's approach was to first ask the repressive and brutal Taliban to surrender Osama bin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barney-frank/but-here-too-it-should-be-noted-that-the-president-s-approach-was-to/) [Barney Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barney-frank/) > [When women participate in peace-making and peace-keeping, we are all safer and more secure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/when-women-participate-in-peace-making-and-peace-keeping-we-are-all/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Part of diplomacy, the hard work of diplomacy is trying to extract whatever concessions you can get, and giving something the other side wants.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/part-of-diplomacy-the-hard-work-of-diplomacy-is-trying-to-extract/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > ['Algebra' roughly translates to 'the system for reconciling disparate parts.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-moore/algebra-roughly-translates-to-the-system-for-reconciling-disparate/) [Terry Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-moore/) > [“The problem of reconciling human suffering with the existence of God who loves, is only insoluble so long as we attach a trivial meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-problem-of-reconciling-human-suffering-with-the-existence-of-god/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [Humour is essentially a comforter, reconciling us to things as they are in contrast to things as they might be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-leacock/humour-is-essentially-a-comforter-reconciling-us-to-things-as-they/) [Stephen Leacock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-leacock/) > [“Truth, in the great practical concerns of life, is so much a question of the reconciling and combining of opposites, that very few have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/truth-in-the-great-practical-concerns-of-life-is-so-much-a-question/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [My mother isn't crazy. She simply has a harder time than most reconciling her reality with everyone else's reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrison/my-mother-isn-t-crazy-she-simply-has-a-harder-time-than-most/) [Kim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrison/) > [In our corrupted state, common weaknesses and defects contribute more towards the reconciling us to one another than all the precepts of the philosophers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-l-wood-1st-earl-of-halifax/in-our-corrupted-state-common-weaknesses-and-defects-contribute-more/) [E. F. L. Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-l-wood-1st-earl-of-halifax/) > [There was a period when I had a hard time reconciling all the different parts of me in a way that I thought would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tessa-thompson/there-was-a-period-when-i-had-a-hard-time-reconciling-all-the/) [Tessa Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tessa-thompson/) > [It goes far towards reconciling me to being a woman, when I reflect that I am thus in no danger of ever marrying one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wortley-montagu/it-goes-far-towards-reconciling-me-to-being-a-woman-when-i-reflect/) [Mary Wortley Montagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wortley-montagu/) > [God was in Christ, reconciling the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamin-sanneh/god-was-in-christ-reconciling-the-world/) Lamin Sanneh > [I often write about reconciling. Reconciling, or maybe half-reconciling between antagonists, between people who are deadly enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/i-often-write-about-reconciling-reconciling-or-maybe-half-reconciling/) [Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/) > [“The overriding aim of this book is to seek viable responses to the biggest dilemma of our times: reconciling our aspirations for the good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-jackson/the-overriding-aim-of-this-book-is-to-seek-viable-responses-to-the/) [Tim Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-jackson/) > [The mark of community is not the absence of conflict. It's the presence of a reconciling spirit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hybels/the-mark-of-community-is-not-the-absence-of-conflict-it-s-the/) [Bill Hybels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hybels/) ## More by Hillary Clinton > [When it comes to bullying small businesses, Donald Trump is the poster boy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/when-it-comes-to-bullying-small-businesses-donald-trump-is-the-poster/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I'm going to do everything I can to get myself elected, but that's not enough. I'm going to try to help move the Senate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-m-going-to-do-everything-i-can-to-get-myself-elected-but-that-s-not/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I think we have to take a look at corporate law. We have to take a look at the incentives that we can perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-think-we-have-to-take-a-look-at-corporate-law-we-have-to-take-a/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I am somewhat influenced by the years that I've spent trying to actually get things done, whether it was reforming education in Arkansas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-somewhat-influenced-by-the-years-that-i-ve-spent-trying-to/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [We know in New York we have several million at any one time who are in New York illegally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-know-in-new-york-we-have-several-million-at-any-one-time-who-are/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I have always believed that women are not victims, we are agents of change, we are drivers of progress, we are makers of peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-have-always-believed-that-women-are-not-victims-we-are-agents-of/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I have clearly said we faced terrorist enemies who use Islam to justify slaughtering innocent people and we have to stop them and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-have-clearly-said-we-faced-terrorist-enemies-who-use-islam-to/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [If I had lost the popular vote but won the electoral college and in my first day as president the intelligence community came to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/if-i-had-lost-the-popular-vote-but-won-the-electoral-college-and-in/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [We now have power under the Dodd-Frank legislation to break up banks. And I've said I will use that power if they pose a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-now-have-power-under-the-dodd-frank-legislation-to-break-up-banks/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I am not going to make promises I can't keep. I am not going to talk about big ideas like single-payer and then not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-not-going-to-make-promises-i-can-t-keep-i-am-not-going-to-talk/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [It's important to recognize that expanding the circle of opportunity and increasing the democratic potential of our own society, as well as those across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/it-s-important-to-recognize-that-expanding-the-circle-of-opportunity/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [We're living in a technological world. You cannot tell me we can't do a better job getting that information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-re-living-in-a-technological-world-you-cannot-tell-me-we-can-t-do/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I do not think homosexuality is immoral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-do-not-think-homosexuality-is-immoral/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [We need to have more second chance programs. I'm glad that we're ending private prisons in the federal system; I want to see them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-need-to-have-more-second-chance-programs-i-m-glad-that-we-re/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [A nuclear-weapons armed Iran is not in anyone's human-rights interests. That is a direct threat to the lives and the livelihoods and the stability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/a-nuclear-weapons-armed-iran-is-not-in-anyone-s-human-rights/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) [Explore all 1,911 Hillary Clinton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) ## More Adversaries quotes > [In all matters of opinion, our adversaries are insane.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/in-all-matters-of-opinion-our-adversaries-are-insane/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Inanimate objects are sometimes parties to litigation. A ship has a legal personality, a fiction found useful for maritime purposes. The corporation sole -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-o-douglas/inanimate-objects-are-sometimes-parties-to-litigation-a-ship-has-a/) [William O. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-o-douglas/) > [There were various aspects of Sun Tzu's approach that appealed to Ho Chi Minh: a) to learn to understand both the enemy and yourself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-duiker/there-were-various-aspects-of-sun-tzu-s-approach-that-appealed-to-ho/) [William J. Duiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-duiker/) > [Marriage, in my view, should be a balanced stalemate between equal adversaries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/marriage-in-my-view-should-be-a-balanced-stalemate-between-equal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If an adversary didn't target our power plants but they did target the core routers, the backbones that tie our internet connections together, entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-an-adversary-didn-t-target-our-power-plants-but-they-did-target/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [It's like I'm married to the silencer, Until I file for divorce and release my ex-calibers. Do art with your arteries, place that for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pharoahe-monch/it-s-like-i-m-married-to-the-silencer-until-i-file-for-divorce-and/) [Pharoahe Monch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pharoahe-monch/) > [Educational exchange can turn nations into people, contributing as no other form of communication can to the humanizing of international relations. Man's capacity for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/educational-exchange-can-turn-nations-into-people-contributing-as-no/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [Obama is hardly the first president to seek rapprochement with our adversaries and reconciliation with our enemies, of course. But his determination to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-f-hayes/obama-is-hardly-the-first-president-to-seek-rapprochement-with-our/) [Stephen F. Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-f-hayes/) > [It is better to make friends than adversaries of a conquered race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-haydon/it-is-better-to-make-friends-than-adversaries-of-a-conquered-race/) [Benjamin Haydon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-haydon/) > [“The most courageous act in politics is to try to understand your opponent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-most-courageous-act-in-politics-is-to-try-to-understand-your/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [My adversary is the world of finance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-hollande/my-adversary-is-the-world-of-finance/) [Francois Hollande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-hollande/) > [Often GOP political strategy seems like the human wave theory of the Chinese military translated to politics. Where Beijing uses masses of soldiers to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-morris/often-gop-political-strategy-seems-like-the-human-wave-theory-of-the/) [Dick Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-morris/) > [Our ability to fall in love requires enough comfort with our masculinity to join it with someone's femininity and feel enhanced. .. . If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-pittman/our-ability-to-fall-in-love-requires-enough-comfort-with-our/) [Frank Pittman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-pittman/) > [You negotiate in bad faith if you do not forgive your adversary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/you-negotiate-in-bad-faith-if-you-do-not-forgive-your-adversary/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [We should seek after spiritual gifts. They can lead us to God. They can shield us from the power of the adversary. They can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallin-h-oaks/we-should-seek-after-spiritual-gifts-they-can-lead-us-to-god-they-can/) [Dallin H. Oaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallin-h-oaks/) [Browse all 446 Adversaries quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversaries/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Reconciling with an adversary that can be as brutal as the Taliban sounds distasteful, even unimaginable. And diplomacy would be easy if we only had to talk to our friends. 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