--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: National sovereignty is an obligation as…" description: "\"National sovereignty is an obligation as well as an entitlement. A government that will not perform the role of a government forfeits the rights of a g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/richard-perle-18482_entitlement_national-sovereignty-is-an-obligation-as_838175.png" --- # National sovereignty is an obligation as well as an… ![“National sovereignty is an obligation as well as an entitlement. A government that will not perform the role of a government forfeits the rights of a government.” quote by Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/richard-perle-18482_entitlement_national-sovereignty-is-an-obligation-as_838175.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/richard-perle-18482_entitlement_national-sovereignty-is-an-obligation-as_838175.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04e/richard-perle-18482_entitlement_national-sovereignty-is-an-obligation-as_838175.png) > “National sovereignty is an obligation as well as an entitlement. A government that will not perform the role of a government forfeits the rights of a government.” [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sovereignty entails both rights and duties; a government that fails its duties forfeits its legitimacy. **In simple terms:** Sovereignty = rights + duties; failure loses legitimacy. Key Takeaway Uphold governmental duties to retain sovereignty. Themes politics law sovereignty Mood serious thoughtful Type philosophical political When to use this quote - policy makers - citizens - legal scholars - activists Key Concepts social contract legitimacy government responsibility Questions to Reflect On - What duties define a sovereign government? - How can citizens hold governments accountable? A Different Perspective If duties are undefined, the claim is vague. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Entitlement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entitlement/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [National sovereignty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/national-sovereignty/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Sovereignty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sovereignty/) ## Related quotes > [We have put in so much entitlement into our government that we really have spoiled our citizenryand said, you don't want the jobs that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharron-angle/we-have-put-in-so-much-entitlement-into-our-government-that-we-really/) [Sharron Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharron-angle/) > [You can make more money on unemployment than you can going down and getting one of those jobs that is an honest job, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharron-angle/you-can-make-more-money-on-unemployment-than-you-can-going-down-and/) [Sharron Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharron-angle/) > [None of us have to settle for the best this administration offers - a dull, adventureless journey from one entitlement to the next, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/none-of-us-have-to-settle-for-the-best-this-administration-offers-a/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [You don't defend national sovereignty with flags, cheap election rhetoric, and advertising campaigns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-harper/you-don-t-defend-national-sovereignty-with-flags-cheap-election/) [Stephen Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-harper/) > [Within the next hundred years...nationhood as we know it will be obsolete; all states will recognize a single, global authority... National sovereignty wasn't such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/strobe-talbott/within-the-next-hundred-years-nationhood-as-we-know-it-will-be/) [Strobe Talbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/strobe-talbott/) > [ The Council on Foreign Relations is the American branch of a society which originated in England ... \[and\] ... believes national boundaries should be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carroll-quigley/the-council-on-foreign-relations-is-the-american-branch-of-a-society/) [Carroll Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carroll-quigley/) > [The invention of the concept of sustainable human development and that of so-called human security, as opposed to territorial security of nation- states, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pranab-mukherjee/the-invention-of-the-concept-of-sustainable-human-development-and/) [Pranab Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pranab-mukherjee/) > [We are now physically, politically, and economically one world and nations so interdependent that the absolute national sovereignty of nations is no longer possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyd-orr/we-are-now-physically-politically-and-economically-one-world-and/) [John Boyd Orr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyd-orr/) > [There is no real peace in Europe, if the states are reconstituted on a basis of national sovereignty. (…) They must have larger markets.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-monnet/there-is-no-real-peace-in-europe-if-the-states-are-reconstituted-on-a/) [Jean Monnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-monnet/) > [It would have been impossible for us to develop our plan for the world if we had been subjected to the lights of publicity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rockefeller/it-would-have-been-impossible-for-us-to-develop-our-plan-for-the/) [David Rockefeller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rockefeller/) > [However fragmented the world, however intense the national rivalries, it is an inexorable fact that we become more interdependent every day. I believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-yves-cousteau/however-fragmented-the-world-however-intense-the-national-rivalries/) [Jacques Yves Cousteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-yves-cousteau/) > [The single most important duty of the federal government is to protect and defend our national sovereignty. There are new and disturbing reports of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-harper/the-single-most-important-duty-of-the-federal-government-is-to/) [Stephen Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-harper/) > [In the model that we grew up with, governments rule physical territory in which national economies function, and strong economies support hegemonic military power.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amory-lovins/in-the-model-that-we-grew-up-with-governments-rule-physical-territory/) [Amory Lovins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amory-lovins/) > [It was in the 20th century that national sovereignty really ruled the roost, and the E.U. was formed to cure that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-davies/it-was-in-the-20th-century-that-national-sovereignty-really-ruled-the/) [Norman Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-davies/) > [The nations must be organized internationally and induced to enter into partnership, subordinating in some measure national sovereignty to worldwide institutions and obligations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-henderson/the-nations-must-be-organized-internationally-and-induced-to-enter/) [Arthur Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-henderson/) ## More by Richard Perle > [In any event, the problem in Iran is much bigger than weapons. The problem is the terrorist regime that seeks the weapons. The regime…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/in-any-event-the-problem-in-iran-is-much-bigger-than-weapons-the/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [George Tenet has been the director of central intelligence since 1997, time enough to have changed the Agency's culture. He has failed. He should go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/george-tenet-has-been-the-director-of-central-intelligence-since-1997/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [Dictatorships start wars because they need external enemies to exert internal control over their own people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/dictatorships-start-wars-because-they-need-external-enemies-to-exert/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [We may be so eager to protect the right to dissent that we lose sight of the difference between dissent and subversion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/we-may-be-so-eager-to-protect-the-right-to-dissent-that-we-lose-sight/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [Iraq is a very wealthy country. Enormous oil reserves. They can finance, largely finance, the reconstruction of their own country. And I have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/iraq-is-a-very-wealthy-country-enormous-oil-reserves-they-can-finance/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [No operational commander should have to assign a soldier a task that could be done as well by a computer, a remote sensor, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/no-operational-commander-should-have-to-assign-a-soldier-a-task-that/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [If we just let our vision of the world go forth, and we embrace it entirely, and we don't try to piece together clever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/if-we-just-let-our-vision-of-the-world-go-forth-and-we-embrace-it/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [I think we have an administration today that is dysfunctional. And if it can't get itself together to organize a serious program for finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/i-think-we-have-an-administration-today-that-is-dysfunctional-and-if/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [Even now, the irony that so non-intellectual a man should choose to engage the Soviet Union on the battlefield of ideas has eluded most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/even-now-the-irony-that-so-non-intellectual-a-man-should-choose-to/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [But if the UN cannot or will not revise its rules in ways that establish beyond question the legality of the measures the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/but-if-the-un-cannot-or-will-not-revise-its-rules-in-ways-that/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [We must do our utmost to preserve our British ally's strategic independence from Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/we-must-do-our-utmost-to-preserve-our-british-ally-s-strategic/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [Law-abiding citizens value privacy. Terrorists require invisibility. The two are not the same, and they should not be confused.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/law-abiding-citizens-value-privacy-terrorists-require-invisibility/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [The jealousy and resentment that animate the terrorists also affect many of our former cold war allies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/the-jealousy-and-resentment-that-animate-the-terrorists-also-affect/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [Few governments in the world, for example, praise human rights more ardently than does the government of France, and few have a worse record…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/few-governments-in-the-world-for-example-praise-human-rights-more/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) > [The programme of the British Labour Party under Neil Kinnock is so wildly irresponsible, so separate and apart from the historic NATO strategy, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-perle/the-programme-of-the-british-labour-party-under-neil-kinnock-is-so/) [Richard Perle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) [Explore all 34 Richard Perle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-perle/) ## More Entitlement quotes > [Nothing more guarantees the erosion of character than getting something for nothing. In the liberal welfare state, one develops an entitlement mentality. And the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/nothing-more-guarantees-the-erosion-of-character-than-getting/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [When you're talking about long-term deficit reduction, $4 trillion worth, entitlement reform needs to be part of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-durbin/when-you-re-talking-about-long-term-deficit-reduction-4-trillion/) [Dick Durbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-durbin/) > [If God was the owner, I was the manager. I needed to adopt a steward's mentality toward the assets He had entrusted - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-alcorn/if-god-was-the-owner-i-was-the-manager-i-needed-to-adopt-a-steward-s/) [Randy Alcorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-alcorn/) > [It's clear that the medium and long-run fiscal challenges facing the country have to do with the rise of entitlement spending, they have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austan-goolsbee/it-s-clear-that-the-medium-and-long-run-fiscal-challenges-facing-the/) [Austan Goolsbee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austan-goolsbee/) > [I opposed the Medicare prescription drug entitlement. I opposed the Wall Street bailout. I opposed the stimulus bill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-pence/i-opposed-the-medicare-prescription-drug-entitlement-i-opposed-the/) [Mike Pence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-pence/) > [This strongly asserted but ill-defined license to kill without accountability is not an entitlement which the United States or other states can have without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-alston/this-strongly-asserted-but-ill-defined-license-to-kill-without/) Philip Alston > [“Entitlement, I have told them, is a matter of feeling like we rather than they.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/entitlement-i-have-told-them-is-a-matter-of-feeling-like-we-rather/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [So now that the illusion of infinite growth is being exposed, the corresponding ballooning entitlements that enticed the larger public to become complicit in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-hugh-smith/so-now-that-the-illusion-of-infinite-growth-is-being-exposed-the/) [Charles Hugh Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-hugh-smith/) > [I don't trust art that promises a 24-hour joyride. In fact, there seems to be a modern sense of entitlement for such constant "ups,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ware/i-don-t-trust-art-that-promises-a-24-hour-joyride-in-fact-there-seems/) [Chris Ware](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ware/) > [“Because when you give too many fucks—when you give a fuck about everyone and everything—you will feel that you’re perpetually entitled to be comfortable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-manson/because-when-you-give-too-many-fucks-when-you-give-a-fuck-about/) [Mark Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-manson/) > [“no man is above the law and that includes the president of the United States”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-allred/no-man-is-above-the-law-and-that-includes-the-president-of-the-united/) [Gloria Allred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-allred/) > [Members of royal families are born into a world of indulgence and entitlement, and the princelings who grow up that way may never have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-kluger/members-of-royal-families-are-born-into-a-world-of-indulgence-and/) [Jeffrey Kluger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-kluger/) > [You have to demand things and believe you're worth more. And once you do demand them, you're usually going to get them. The players…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-wicks/you-have-to-demand-things-and-believe-you-re-worth-more-and-once-you/) [Sue Wicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-wicks/) > [Why is it that the very people who have fought so hard and so long for the simple entitlement to love whom they choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ridley/why-is-it-that-the-very-people-who-have-fought-so-hard-and-so-long/) [John Ridley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ridley/) > [I was surrounded by too many people who felt that they had a strong sense of entitlement. That I owed them something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-jackson/i-was-surrounded-by-too-many-people-who-felt-that-they-had-a-strong/) [Curtis Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-jackson/) [Browse all 437 Entitlement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entitlement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "National sovereignty is an obligation as well as an entitlement. 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