Robin Cook Quotations

There were no international terrorists in Iraq until we went in. It was we who gave the perfect conditions in which Al Qaeda could thrive.

I can't accept collective responsibility for the decision to commit Britain now to military action in Iraq without international agreement or domestic support.

There is no question at any stage of Tony offering me his resignation nor at any stage of my thinking that he should be resigning,

There is no purpose in extending the talks any further,

Yes, but all the effort he has had to put into concealment makes it difficult for him to assemble them quickly for use.

We want peace, but it must be a peace that makes Kosovo safe for the refugees to go home

We want the peace talks to resume on all tracks as soon as possible,

We want to stop the breaches in the cease-fire and we want to avoid the potential of future atrocities,

We are here to help clarify one of the darkest episodes in human history,

We hold President Milosevic responsible for the safety of these three men,

We cannot accept any peace that does not allow refugees to return and return safely,

make a very serious decision in the next few hours.

Should have let U.N. weapons inspectors finish the job

Neither of us is predicting there will be an agreement by Tuesday, but what we have seen over the past 24 hours is substantial movement,

Nobody is saying that it's for the government of Sierra Leone to get on for itself, ... We are heavily involved in making sure they are able to do that in both building up their army and by also providing by far the largest donation to the peace process since the rebuilding of Sierra Leone.

If they are willing to be genuine partners in this project, we are willing to help -- not only by contributing ourselves but also by taking the lead in the international community,

because we are determined to make an impact from our air campaigns and follow up on the good success that we've achieved.

For years Libya has promised that it would accept a court without jury meeting in a third country. That way forward is now open to them,

If that is what Belgrade accepts, then we do have a good basis for securing the objectives of our campaign,

There is a difficulty in the peace process in that while all three tracks remain in stalemate, it is hard for any party in the negotiations to feel confident in the possibility of progress, ... And because there is no confidence in the possibility of progress, it is difficult to generate momentum toward progress.

What we are witnessing is not an end, but a new beginning, ... Today at this meeting we are discussing ... how the European Union can fulfill its lead role for the reconstruction of Kosovo.

has undertaken to consider how it is going to accept international obligations in that regard.

We may be able through this conference to establish funds that will assist them and make sure they don't experience a second tragedy of having spent their youth being persecuted and now dying in poverty in their old age,

It accentuates our grave concern about the increased risk of nuclear and missile proliferation in South Asia, and of escalating tension in that region.

It is clear from weekend reports that the violence in Kosovo has continued. We do not accept that this is merely an internal matter.

It is politically and diplomatically possible to negotiate withdrawal

I welcome this statement, which looks like a positive development, ... We shall need to study exactly what the Libyans have said.

I welcome any move which helps bring Milosevic to justice, ... It is vital that Milosevic answers these charges.

I warmly welcome the news that the meeting in Rome has agreed (to) the terms of a statute to establish the International Criminal Court,

It is a visible demonstration to our commitment to completing the job,

It is an historic step, and I am delighted that the U.K. played a leading role in its achievement.

Last night, (Yugoslav) President (Slobodan) Milosevic made what he called a peace offer. He said he was starting to withdraw his troops from Kosovo,

Over time, more and more of them will be coerced to stay static to save fuel, ... If they come out of hiding, they will be hit.

rising indignation against the people who had ordered these atrocities.

Our objective is clear: to impress on India and Pakistan the urgent need to adhere to the global non-proliferation regime, to conduct no further tests, and to begin a dialogue which will go to the heart of the differences between them. The nuclear tests have only increased tension, not enhanced security,

Some of (the press) are treating as proven facts allegations which have been made against officials, ... In fairness to the officials, I would ask press and public not to rush into judgment.

My other objective today was to secure fair elections, free of intimidation,

I think it would probably be fair to say that there was a selection of evidence to support the conclusion rather than a conclusion that arose from a full consideration of the evidence,

I think it would be doubly tragic if it does emerge this accident was, in part, caused by the persistent hounding of the princess and her privacy by photographers,

I was pleased that the prime minister assured me that he would make inquiries today about access ... to the remaining two British citizens he has not yet seen,

I was pleased that the prime minister also assured me that those detained would be treated in accordance with due process of law.

We are trying to find a peaceful solution to the crisis, ... We do not want to use force. But we will not let Saddam Hussein continue to obstruct the U.N. inspection teams.

we are dismayed by the nuclear tests which have been carried out by Pakistan.

We had no contact with the Spanish government before he came or before he was arrested, ... There was absolutely no entrapment in this case.

We are looking for a strong declaration that there must be a return to the rule of law and an end to the illegal occupation of the farms,

Today's agreement does not embrace any renegade fanatic who may wish to still try to carry out a threat to the life of Salman Rushdie,

We are making sure that every possible pressure is brought to bear on President Mugabe, ... There has to be an end to the occupations and a start to elections.

We condemn this action, which runs counter to the will expressed by 149 signatories to the (comprehensive test ban treaty) to cease nuclear testing, and to efforts to strengthen the global non-proliferation regime,

We would also like to see (Resolution 425) implemented in the context of a comprehensive settlement which would enable progress on the peace process for all the tracks, not just one track, ... I wish to make sure that all sides can live in security.

We said last time we would not be giving formal warnings to Saddam Hussein, ... I'm not now going to give him any warning of what we might do.

We were told there were weapons of mass destruction ready for firing in 45 minutes. We now can't find any weapons of mass destruction ready to be fired in 45 minutes or any other period of time.

The question Tony Blair should be reflecting on this weekend is ... whether now might be a better time to let a new leader in who could then achieve the unity we need if we are going to go forward,

The opening of diplomatic relations is not in any way an approval of the conduct of the regime, ... But it may well be helpful in resolving ... the strong tension between it and South Korea.

The president of South Korea is very keen that other countries help to engage North Korea by bringing it in from the cold.

to make sure that we do make it very difficult for the Yugoslav army to support the repression in Kosovo and that we increase the cost of Milosevic of doing that.

Tony did not try to argue me out of the view that Saddam did not have real weapons of mass destruction that were designed for strategic use against city populations and capable of being delivered with reliability over long distances,

Those teeth will be supplied by the NATO countries,

We cannot ask British pilots to patrol the no-fly zones and not act when we see Saddam Hussein preparing to shoot them down. That is why we took the action yesterday.

We want to ensure there is an end to drug trafficking and an end to the violence, ... Britain is keen to support Colombia.

Tony made no attempt to pretend that what (then-chief U.N. weapons inspector) Hans Blix might report would make any difference to the countdown to invasion,

We will now only stop the NATO campaign if Milosevic makes an offer of real substance that meets NATO's key demands: a cease-fire on the ground and a halt to ethnic cleansing,

We expect this visit to provide a further boost to the excellent commercial relationships Britain and Argentina enjoy,

We don't trust him. Of course we don't trust him. That's precisely why the critical element for us in any deal that can stick would be mechanisms to make sure he can't go back on it,

We are very concerned ... We need to know she's safe, is well. What's happened to her is a scandal,

We should do nothing that would weaken NATO. We firmly believe that a stronger European contribution to crisis management can actually strengthen NATO. There is no difference between us on that,

We have done a lot here even if we have not done enough, ... We will use the next three weeks to convince the Serbs and to convince the Albanians that the agreement is a good bargain for both sides.

Britain is ready to act ... It's beginning to look like the only language President Milosevic will listen to is the threat of force,

Between us, France and Britain will commit a majority of the troops that are currently committed to that (NATO) force, ... We are both clear we are only going to supply our troops ... if there is a cease-fire and a demilitarization on both sides.

Belgrade had better take note -- the outside world is not going to let this one go, ... The EU is going to make sure ethnic confrontation is not going to be allowed to continue in any part of Europe.

enables us to escape from the stalemate that we had on which way to make forward on the peace track.

The Russian government throughout has sought to be as helpful as it can within its power, but that power is very limited in Chechnya,

I very much hope that it is the deal we are looking for, ... What he is saying is encouraging ... If he has got the kind of deal that appears to be emerging, he has moved Saddam a long way.

The starting point for our discussions will be the offer we made in 1988 to help fund a program of land reform, ... But it has to be a program that is within the rule of law and helps the rural poor. And the occupations have to stop.

The tests do nothing to enhance Pakistan's security environment. They further escalate tension and heighten concerns about an arms race in South Asia.... In carrying out these further tests, Pakistan has acted in flagrant disregard of international opinion.... The international community is united in its insistence that Pakistan should refrain from further tests.

Tell the people of Serbia how much wealth you have sucked out during the same years they have been impoverished in Serbia,

Saddam alone is to blame for his people's suffering. It is a myth that UN policy prevents the delivery of food and medicines. To export most goods to Iraq - including food, medicines, agricultural and educational equipment, and water and sanitation goods - it is simply necessary to notify the UN.

President Milosevic has once again made clear his attitude toward the truth -- he's terrified of it,

Sanctions could not be lifted if he signs up to the agreement, but sanctions could certainly be lifted if he carries out the agreement,

A European operation will only occur where NATO, as a whole, has decided not to act,

an important initial step which will help the EU get a clearer picture of the situation on the ground.

are getting very close to agreement across a number of fronts.

a Scottish court administering Scottish law under Scottish procedures and Scottish rules of evidence.

This does not imply a crisis because they had always agreed they would go back at least once in mid-week,

And I hope he will be willing to work with us and with the international community to take forward that peace process,

Almost half of them have voted for a new beginning. Despite the climate of fear, the people of Zimbabwe showed that they expect, and that they deserve, a much greater level of democracy.

There must be proper access to legal representation and it must be an open and fair trial which we can observe and monitor.

The remarkable thing in these circumstances is how many of the people in Zimbabwe braved the violence and voted for change,

It's a clear signs of the weakness of the regime ... that it's afraid to let her travel,

It is very appropriate that I should be visiting Lebanon today because tomorrow is the 20th anniversary of 425, ... We would like to see 425 implemented.

It represents a further step forward in the Yugoslavia's return to Europe. We look forward to exchanging ambassadors as soon as possible.

It is time to start talking and to get down to real serious business on the proposals by the Contact Group,

It makes me very angry and also at the same time very sad that anybody should carry out such a violent attack with no possible gain from it and only suffering to the individual and his family,

The objective of today's meeting is to summon both sides together and to do it on a tight deadline, saying 'we want you to meet next week, we want you to conclude very shortly after that'.

The ball is now in their court, ... It is up to them to end the occupations.

It's been imposed upon them by Milosevic who told them they would be guilty of treason to come here, ... (For) Milosevic to argue that it is treason to talk to the rest of Europe ... demonstrates how desperately isolationist he is and what a menace he is to the people of Serbia.

It's very important that we all send Saddam Hussein a message that is resolute, is firm and is united, ... He must be firmly told that he is not going to be permitted to continue to build weapons of mass destruction, particularly biological and chemical weapons.

It will also enable the EU to make clear to the Algerian government the concern felt in Europe about the security situation... and our desire to offer humanitarian assistance,

The watchword for our meeting will be resolve,

I want to spell out to the people of Britain why our forces are bravely risking their lives destroying Saddam's threat to humanity. Our objective is to achieve by military action the disarmament Saddam will not allow the UN inspectors to carry out on the ground.

Anyone on the streets knows we were not elected because Tony Blair was popular this time around,