--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Be careful, he says, the official US…" description: "\"“Be careful, he says, the official US position will be that they refuse to negotiate for hostages, but they may try to enlist the U.N. to do it.”\" — Ke..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg" --- # Be careful, he says, the official US position will be that… ![“Be careful, he says, the official US position will be that they refuse to negotiate for hostages, but they may try to enlist the U.N. to do it.” quote by Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg) > ““Be careful, he says, the official US position will be that they refuse to negotiate for hostages, but they may try to enlist the U.N. to do it.”” [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Officially refusing to negotiate, the US may still seek UN involvement for hostage resolution. **In simple terms:** US may use UN to aid hostage talks despite official stance. Key Takeaway Consider diplomatic alternatives when direct talks stall. Themes politics negotiation conflict resolution Mood cautious analytical Type political strategic When to use this quote - government policy - crisis management - humanitarian efforts Key Concepts diplomacy international law Questions to Reflect On - What are the risks of indirect negotiation? - How can transparency improve outcomes? A Different Perspective Reliance on UN may be ineffective if parties are unwilling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hostages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hostages/) ## Related quotes > [I think business has to be stupider. I want to do really straightforward, stupid business - just talk to me like a 4-year-old. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanye-west/i-think-business-has-to-be-stupider-i-want-to-do-really/) [Kanye West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanye-west/) > [Well, first of all, no professor should be able to say, I refuse to defend my position. I refuse to debate my position.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/well-first-of-all-no-professor-should-be-able-to-say-i-refuse-to/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [I would have promised those terrorists a trip to Disneyland if it would have gotten the hostages released. I thank God they were satisfied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-north/i-would-have-promised-those-terrorists-a-trip-to-disneyland-if-it/) [Oliver North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-north/) > [No commandment surpasses the one concerning the liberation of hostages, for they are among the starving, the thirsting, the stripped, always in danger of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/no-commandment-surpasses-the-one-concerning-the-liberation-of/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“The goal with hostages is to gradually lower expectations; in nonhostage crises, it's to lower emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-cullen/the-goal-with-hostages-is-to-gradually-lower-expectations-in/) [Dave Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-cullen/) > [President Carter famously said the hostages were the first thing he thought about in the morning and the last thing he thought about at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-koppel/president-carter-famously-said-the-hostages-were-the-first-thing-he/) [Ted Koppel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-koppel/) > ['Betrayed' starts off with Shane Gallagher rescuing Elena Reyes and a group of hostages from a madman with a gun. And as the story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-glick/betrayed-starts-off-with-shane-gallagher-rescuing-elena-reyes-and-a/) [Ruth Glick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-glick/) > [“now ringing the superintendent at the field command post, and praying that she was in time. \* \* \* Heart beating like a jack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-ellis/now-ringing-the-superintendent-at-the-field-command-post-and-praying/) [Joy Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-ellis/) > [At the beginning, because the lives of the hostages were at stake, then during this silent period we have taken several measures like not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-fujimori/at-the-beginning-because-the-lives-of-the-hostages-were-at-stake-then/) [Alberto Fujimori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-fujimori/) > [I have a wife, I have sons; all these hostages have I given to fortune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-l-lucas/i-have-a-wife-i-have-sons-all-these-hostages-have-i-given-to-fortune/) [F. L. Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-l-lucas/) > [We should never remain hostages of our past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmerson-mnangagwa/we-should-never-remain-hostages-of-our-past/) [Emmerson Mnangagwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmerson-mnangagwa/) > [I have a wife, I have sons: all of them hostages given to fate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucan/i-have-a-wife-i-have-sons-all-of-them-hostages-given-to-fate/) [Lucan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucan/) > [I stand on the side of the United States government in making sure we do everything we can to get our hostages home and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-shapiro/i-stand-on-the-side-of-the-united-states-government-in-making-sure-we/) [Josh Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-shapiro/) > [“Ten years ago I saw a documentary on the siege of that Moscow theater. After just forty-eight hours of the terrorists confining the hostages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/ten-years-ago-i-saw-a-documentary-on-the-siege-of-that-moscow-theater/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [When death gives us a long lease of life, it takes as hostages all those whom we have loved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-curchod/when-death-gives-us-a-long-lease-of-life-it-takes-as-hostages-all/) [Suzanne Curchod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-curchod/) ## More by Kenneth Cain > [“If blue-helmeted U.N. peacekeepers show up in your town or village and offer to protect you, run. Or else get weapons. Your lives are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/if-blue-helmeted-u-n-peacekeepers-show-up-in-your-town-or-village-and/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) > [“Israelis are a mix of North African, Levantine, and Eastern European, which inflames the politics but does amazing things for the women.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/israelis-are-a-mix-of-north-african-levantine-and-eastern-european/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) > [“Iwent to school with African-American girls during my entire adolescence in Michigan and never noticed them as potential girlfriends, never even wanted to meet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/iwent-to-school-with-african-american-girls-during-my-entire/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) > [“I was hell-bent on being an effective humanitarian in Cambodia and Somalia. But a naïve fog is finally lifting. Revealed is a train wreck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/i-was-hell-bent-on-being-an-effective-humanitarian-in-cambodia-and/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) > [“The problem is that no matter how good your intentions, eventually you want to kill someone yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/the-problem-is-that-no-matter-how-good-your-intentions-eventually-you/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) > [“I'm not ready to let the youthful part of myself go yet. If maturity means becoming a cynic, if you have to kill the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/i-m-not-ready-to-let-the-youthful-part-of-myself-go-yet-if-maturity/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) > [“Meanwhile she's coldly interrogating me with her eyes. She's definitely in charge of this house and this moment. This must be Chloe. She escorts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/meanwhile-she-s-coldly-interrogating-me-with-her-eyes-she-s/) [Kenneth Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) [Explore all 8 Kenneth Cain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/) ## More Hostages quotes > [When death gives us a long lease of life, it takes as hostages all those whom we have loved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-curchod/when-death-gives-us-a-long-lease-of-life-it-takes-as-hostages-all/) [Suzanne Curchod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-curchod/) > [“Ten years ago I saw a documentary on the siege of that Moscow theater. After just forty-eight hours of the terrorists confining the hostages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/ten-years-ago-i-saw-a-documentary-on-the-siege-of-that-moscow-theater/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [I stand on the side of the United States government in making sure we do everything we can to get our hostages home and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-shapiro/i-stand-on-the-side-of-the-united-states-government-in-making-sure-we/) [Josh Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-shapiro/) > [I have a wife, I have sons: all of them hostages given to fate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucan/i-have-a-wife-i-have-sons-all-of-them-hostages-given-to-fate/) [Lucan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucan/) > [We should never remain hostages of our past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmerson-mnangagwa/we-should-never-remain-hostages-of-our-past/) [Emmerson Mnangagwa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmerson-mnangagwa/) > [I have a wife, I have sons; all these hostages have I given to fortune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-l-lucas/i-have-a-wife-i-have-sons-all-these-hostages-have-i-given-to-fortune/) [F. L. Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-l-lucas/) > [At the beginning, because the lives of the hostages were at stake, then during this silent period we have taken several measures like not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-fujimori/at-the-beginning-because-the-lives-of-the-hostages-were-at-stake-then/) [Alberto Fujimori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-fujimori/) > [“now ringing the superintendent at the field command post, and praying that she was in time. \* \* \* Heart beating like a jack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-ellis/now-ringing-the-superintendent-at-the-field-command-post-and-praying/) [Joy Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-ellis/) > ['Betrayed' starts off with Shane Gallagher rescuing Elena Reyes and a group of hostages from a madman with a gun. And as the story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-glick/betrayed-starts-off-with-shane-gallagher-rescuing-elena-reyes-and-a/) [Ruth Glick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-glick/) > [President Carter famously said the hostages were the first thing he thought about in the morning and the last thing he thought about at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-koppel/president-carter-famously-said-the-hostages-were-the-first-thing-he/) [Ted Koppel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-koppel/) > [“The goal with hostages is to gradually lower expectations; in nonhostage crises, it's to lower emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-cullen/the-goal-with-hostages-is-to-gradually-lower-expectations-in/) [Dave Cullen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-cullen/) > [No commandment surpasses the one concerning the liberation of hostages, for they are among the starving, the thirsting, the stripped, always in danger of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/no-commandment-surpasses-the-one-concerning-the-liberation-of/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I would have promised those terrorists a trip to Disneyland if it would have gotten the hostages released. I thank God they were satisfied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-north/i-would-have-promised-those-terrorists-a-trip-to-disneyland-if-it/) [Oliver North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-north/) > [“You’re the man who used to rescue hostages for a living. You are not allowed to not get out of this one. So stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-mcmaster-bujold/you-re-the-man-who-used-to-rescue-hostages-for-a-living-you-are-not/) [Lois McMaster Bujold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-mcmaster-bujold/) > [Terrorists don't take black hostages. That's the truth. I have yet to see one of us on the news reading a hostage letter. Like,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-chappelle/terrorists-don-t-take-black-hostages-that-s-the-truth-i-have-yet-to/) [Dave Chappelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-chappelle/) [Browse all 44 Hostages quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hostages/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Be careful, he says, the official US position will be that they refuse to negotiate for hostages, but they may try to enlist the U.N. to do it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kenneth Cain" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-position-will-be-that-they-refuse/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hostages" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-position-will-be-that-they-refuse/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/68d/kenneth-cain-48485_quote_be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-posit_2076094.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Be careful, he says, the official US position will be that they refuse to negotiate for hostages, but they…” — Kenneth Cain", "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": "Kenneth Cain", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-cain/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Be careful, he says, the official...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-position-will-be-that-they-refuse/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-cain/be-careful-he-says-the-official-us-position-will-be-that-they-refuse/#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 } } ] } ```