--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The most dangerous states in the…" description: "\"The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies.\" — John Mearsheimer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg" --- # The most dangerous states in the international system are… ![“The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies.” quote by John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg) > “The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies.” [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Large continental armies create the greatest risk of aggressive behavior in global politics. **In simple terms:** Big armies are dangerous. Key Takeaway Limit military expansion. Themes power security aggression Mood cautious analytical Type political strategic When to use this quote - diplomatic negotiations - military budgeting - conflict prevention - regional alliances Key Concepts realism balance of power Questions to Reflect On - How do alliances mitigate large army threats? - What non‑military tools reduce risk? A Different Perspective Power alone cannot guarantee security. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Armies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/armies/) [Army](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/) ## Related quotes > [From the 15th century to 1688, England and Wales, like Scotland, had been peripheral kingdoms in the European power game, more often at war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-colley/from-the-15th-century-to-1688-england-and-wales-like-scotland-had/) [Linda Colley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-colley/) > [As we've seen, deploying large armies abroad won't always be our best offense. Countries typically don't want foreign soldiers in their cities and towns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-brennan/as-we-ve-seen-deploying-large-armies-abroad-won-t-always-be-our-best/) [John O. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-brennan/) > [“Both nations have an idea of Manifest Destiny and a concept of the Monroe Doctrine in their ideological arsenal, and both are continental powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-mendis/both-nations-have-an-idea-of-manifest-destiny-and-a-concept-of-the/) [Patrick Mendis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-mendis/) > [Bogging down large armies in historically complex, dangerous areas ends in disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-hagel/bogging-down-large-armies-in-historically-complex-dangerous-areas/) [Chuck Hagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-hagel/) > [God is on everyone's side... and in the last analysis, he is on the side with plenty of money and large armies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-anouilh/god-is-on-everyone-s-side-and-in-the-last-analysis-he-is-on-the-side/) [Jean Anouilh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-anouilh/) > [So long as large armies go to battle, so long will the air arm remain their spearhead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-falls/so-long-as-large-armies-go-to-battle-so-long-will-the-air-arm-remain/) Cyril Falls > [It occurred to me that if I could invent a machine - a gun - which could by its rapidity of fire, enable one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-jordan-gatling/it-occurred-to-me-that-if-i-could-invent-a-machine-a-gun-which-could/) Richard Jordan Gatling > [We have got to accept Big Government for the duration-for neither an offensive nor a defensive war can be waged, given our present government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-f-buckley-jr/we-have-got-to-accept-big-government-for-the-duration-for-neither-an/) [William F. Buckley, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-f-buckley-jr/) > [“An unpleasant odour would not be objected to, it is not objected to now in many continental hotels.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells-2/an-unpleasant-odour-would-not-be-objected-to-it-is-not-objected-to/) [H.G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells-2/) > [In politics continental Europe was infantile - horrifying. What America lacked, for all its political stability, was the capacity to enjoy intellectual pleasures as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/in-politics-continental-europe-was-infantile-horrifying-what-america/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Unlike the rationalism of the French Revolution, true liberalism has no quarrel with religion, and I can only deplore the militant and essentially illiberal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/unlike-the-rationalism-of-the-french-revolution-true-liberalism-has/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [China is one of those vast, continental conglomerates that... I mean, if they were to start a tourist trade in China, they'd just bus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damon-albarn/china-is-one-of-those-vast-continental-conglomerates-that-i-mean-if/) [Damon Albarn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damon-albarn/) > [I became the first ever Euro-continental champion in WWF history. Well, besides D-Lo Brown, but he doesn't count.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-angle/i-became-the-first-ever-euro-continental-champion-in-wwf-history-well/) [Kurt Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-angle/) > [The First Continental Congress made its first act a prayer, the beginning of a great tradition. We have then a lesson from the founders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-first-continental-congress-made-its-first-act-a-prayer-the/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [Since 1775, when the first Continental Congress called for a national day of prayer, there have been such events called for by almost every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dobson/since-1775-when-the-first-continental-congress-called-for-a-national/) [James Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dobson/) ## More by John Mearsheimer > [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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/since-the-mid-1990s-russian-leaders-have-adamantly-opposed-nato/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [The unpleasant truth is that some borders are untenable and preserving them causes conflict, not peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-unpleasant-truth-is-that-some-borders-are-untenable-and/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Decapitation is a fanciful strategy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/decapitation-is-a-fanciful-strategy/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Great powers react harshly when distant rivals project military power into their neighborhood, much less attempt to make a country on their border an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/great-powers-react-harshly-when-distant-rivals-project-military-power/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [I hate sleeping in the woods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/i-hate-sleeping-in-the-woods/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [When the United States worked to contain the Soviet Union during the Cold War, we went to enormous lengths to get as many countries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/when-the-united-states-worked-to-contain-the-soviet-union-during-the/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [The central aim of American foreign policy has traditionally been to dominate the western hemisphere while not permitting another great power to dominate Europe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-central-aim-of-american-foreign-policy-has-traditionally-been-to/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Nuclear weapons are the ideal middle-class weapons for Americans. They provide massive amounts of deterrence on the cheap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/nuclear-weapons-are-the-ideal-middle-class-weapons-for-americans-they/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [States have two kinds of power: latent power and military power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/states-have-two-kinds-of-power-latent-power-and-military-power/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Erosion of sovereignty is one more reason a powerful state with a liberal foreign policy ends up fighting never ending wars and fostering militarism…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/erosion-of-sovereignty-is-one-more-reason-a-powerful-state-with-a/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Simply put, the most powerful state is the one that prevails in a dispute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/simply-put-the-most-powerful-state-is-the-one-that-prevails-in-a/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [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,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/what-disappoints-me-about-obama-is-that-when-he-came-into-office-he/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [The question of whether or not the United States or any other great power should expand, should pursue regional hegemony, or pursue global hegemony,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-question-of-whether-or-not-the-united-states-or-any-other-great/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [The more closely any ism accords with human nature, the more relevance it will have in the real world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-more-closely-any-ism-accords-with-human-nature-the-more-relevance/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) > [Offensive realism predicts that the United States will send its army across the Atlantic when there is a potential hegemon in Europe that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/offensive-realism-predicts-that-the-united-states-will-send-its-army/) [John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) [Explore all 121 John Mearsheimer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/) ## More Armies quotes > [It's with them that we have constituted a liberation front and brought our logistic support to armies to help their countries come out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/it-s-with-them-that-we-have-constituted-a-liberation-front-and/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Countries, not just their armies, win wars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/countries-not-just-their-armies-win-wars/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [We are not intimidated by the size of the armies, or the type of hardware the US has brought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saddam-hussein/we-are-not-intimidated-by-the-size-of-the-armies-or-the-type-of/) [Saddam Hussein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saddam-hussein/) > [All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our own excepted) in their military chest; with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/all-the-armies-of-europe-asia-and-africa-combined-with-all-the/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [If one is intelligent and applies himself well, what can he not accomplish? Even small bands of people, I have heard, have defeated whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sakya-pandita/if-one-is-intelligent-and-applies-himself-well-what-can-he-not/) Sakya Pandita > [I sincerely believe... that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/i-sincerely-believe-that-banking-establishments-are-more-dangerous-2/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [Rule 1, on page I of the book of war, is: "Do not march on Moscow". Various people have tried it, Napoleon and Hitler,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-law-montgomery/rule-1-on-page-i-of-the-book-of-war-is-do-not-march-on-moscow-various/) [Bernard Law Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-law-montgomery/) > [If you're in the middle of a field, surrounded by armies, left right and centre, you can't just say: 'I've had enough now, sorry.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-pardew/if-you-re-in-the-middle-of-a-field-surrounded-by-armies-left-right/) [Alan Pardew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-pardew/) > [My favorite parts about 'The Battle of Five Armies' were the moments where you could clearly see that we were looking at New Zealand.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evangeline-lilly/my-favorite-parts-about-the-battle-of-five-armies-were-the-moments/) [Evangeline Lilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evangeline-lilly/) > [As we've seen, deploying large armies abroad won't always be our best offense. Countries typically don't want foreign soldiers in their cities and towns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-brennan/as-we-ve-seen-deploying-large-armies-abroad-won-t-always-be-our-best/) [John O. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-brennan/) > [Armies are a purely human invention. Most soldiers who go to war nowadays don't even do it because they're inherently aggressive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/armies-are-a-purely-human-invention-most-soldiers-who-go-to-war/) [Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/) > [“How long does it take for two armies to destroy each other when one has an abundance of bodies and the other an abundance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-mazza/how-long-does-it-take-for-two-armies-to-destroy-each-other-when-one/) Sarah Mazza > [Ants are so much like human beings as to be an embarrassment. They farm fungi, raise aphids as livestock, launch armies into war, use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/ants-are-so-much-like-human-beings-as-to-be-an-embarrassment-they/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [History shows that there are no invincible armies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/history-shows-that-there-are-no-invincible-armies/) [Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/) > [Great armies are nothing but a collection of weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-queen-of-sweden/great-armies-are-nothing-but-a-collection-of-weakness/) [Christina, Queen of Sweden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-queen-of-sweden/) [Browse all 123 Armies quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/armies/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Mearsheimer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-international-system-are-continental/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Armies" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-international-system-are-continental/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/543/john-mearsheimer-3817_armies_the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-interna_2992259.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The most dangerous states in the international system are continental powers with large armies.” — John Mearsheimer", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Mearsheimer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mearsheimer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The most dangerous states in the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-international-system-are-continental/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mearsheimer/the-most-dangerous-states-in-the-international-system-are-continental/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```