--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The unpleasant truth is that some borders…" description: "\"The unpleasant truth is that some borders are untenable and preserving them causes conflict, not peace.\" — John Mearsheimer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/john-mearsheimer-3817_borders_the-unpleasant-truth-is-that-some-border_42074.jpg" --- # The unpleasant truth is that some borders are untenable… ![“The unpleasant truth is that some borders are untenable and preserving them causes conflict, not peace.” quote by John Mearsheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/john-mearsheimer-3817_borders_the-unpleasant-truth-is-that-some-border_42074.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/john-mearsheimer-3817_borders_the-unpleasant-truth-is-that-some-border_42074.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c7/john-mearsheimer-3817_borders_the-unpleasant-truth-is-that-some-border_42074.jpg) > “The unpleasant truth is that some borders are untenable and preserving them causes conflict, not peace.” [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. Borders that cannot be sustained generate tension; maintaining them fuels conflict rather than fostering peace. **In simple terms:** Unsustainable borders breed conflict. Key Takeaway Preserve peace, not untenable borders. Themes Geopolitics Conflict Theory State Sovereignty Peace Studies Mood Serious Reflective Type Political Analytical When to use this quote - Diplomatic negotiations - Territorial disputes - Nation‑building - International peacekeeping Key Concepts Border Legitimacy Security Dilemma Practical Applications - Policy analysis - Conflict resolution Questions to Reflect On - When should a border be redrawn? - How can nations balance security with peace? A Different Perspective Some argue that strong borders are essential for national identity and security, countering the claim that they inherently cause conflict. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Borders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/borders/) [Conflict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conflict/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [“What causes Conflict? 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The British, when they were leaving finally and knew exactly who they wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/the-process-of-decolonisation-in-nigeria-was-a-very-untidy-one-the/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [Never think that wars are irrational catastrophes: they happen when wrong ways of thinking and living bring about intolerable situations ... the root causes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/never-think-that-wars-are-irrational-catastrophes-they-happen-when/) [Dorothy L. 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In the back of your mind you will know that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/but-self-deception-of-this-kind-ed-persecution-cannot-lead-to-any/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [We are motivated more by aversion to the unpleasant than by a will toward truth, freedom, or healing. We are constantly attempting to escape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/we-are-motivated-more-by-aversion-to-the-unpleasant-than-by-a-will/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [No satisfaction based upon self-deception is solid, and however unpleasant the truth may be, it is better to face it once and for all,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/no-satisfaction-based-upon-self-deception-is-solid-and-however/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [LIAR, n. One who tells an unpleasant truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/liar-n-one-who-tells-an-unpleasant-truth/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Better is to speak unpleasant truth than to tell lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/better-is-to-speak-unpleasant-truth-than-to-tell-lies/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [I am no faint-heart when it comes to the unpleasant truth. Indeed I have always taken a bracing sort of pleasure in facing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jude-morgan/i-am-no-faint-heart-when-it-comes-to-the-unpleasant-truth-indeed-i/) [Jude Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jude-morgan/) ## 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/) > [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. 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But I feel very uncomfortable about placing a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasumasa-morimura/when-we-talk-about-contemporary-art-and-contemporary-artists-we/) [Yasumasa Morimura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasumasa-morimura/) > [Photography... unites the obvious and the unconscious at the level of the limimal - the border between what we see and what we suspect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-lorca-dicorcia/photography-unites-the-obvious-and-the-unconscious-at-the-level-of/) [Philip-Lorca diCorcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-lorca-dicorcia/) > [When you have the Chief of Staff of the Republican National Committee and the political director of the Romney campaign, and their two companies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-caddell/when-you-have-the-chief-of-staff-of-the-republican-national-committee/) [Patrick Caddell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-caddell/) > [Fifty thousand people in Mexico have been murdered. Puerto Penasco, 60 miles south of our border, just had five people and a police officer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-brewer/fifty-thousand-people-in-mexico-have-been-murdered-puerto-penasco-60/) [Jan Brewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-brewer/) > [Interesting things happen along borders - transitions - not in the middle where everything is the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-stephenson/interesting-things-happen-along-borders-transitions-not-in-the-middle/) [Neal Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-stephenson/) > [At no other time (than autumn) does the earth let itself be inhaled in one smell, the ripe earth; in a smell that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/at-no-other-time-than-autumn-does-the-earth-let-itself-be-inhaled-in/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [House Republicans want to pass a strong border security, illegal immigration bill. We want a bill. 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