When you look at the Lebanon-Syria border, you see a porous border despite the fact that you have a U.N. Security Council decision that speaks of an embargo on weapons transfers to Hezbollah.
Israel was established as a homeland for the Jewish people and embraced all the Jews who had to leave Arab states. This should be also the true meaning of the future Palestinian state. It should be the answer for the Palestinians wherever they are - those who live in the territories, and those who are being kept as political cards in refugee camps.
I am good at persuading people. In convincing the other, I try to start from their point of view so it's easier for me to find a common denominator.
Wars are not a choice we make for no reason.
I didn't go into politics out of concern for the Palestinians but out of concern for Israel.
The reason for the blockade on Gaza was not to punish the Palestinians but to continue to delegitimize Hamas.
Hamas does not represent the national aspirations of the Palestinians. It represents extreme Islamic ideas, which they share with Iran, Hezbollah, and Syria.
Hamas's strategy is resistance and survival. As long as they survive, this is a victory.
There is the worldview of Greater Israel, the worldview of settlements: to send citizens to live in those places. That's not about security; that's not about the army. That's about an ideology that believes we need to stay in all of the Land of Israel. I don't share that ideology.
I resent the idea that Israel is part of the political agenda in United States' campaigns, really.
In a democracy, you need to have a strong judicial system. You need freedom of speech, you need art, and you need a free press.
The real danger is a politics that buries its head in the sand.
Sinai is demilitarized in accordance with the Israel-Egypt peace agreement.
On the right of Israel to exist and to defend itself, there is no opposition in Israel.
We are fighting to keep Israel a democracy - not just in terms of its electoral system but also in terms of its values.
The capacity to influence radical groups can diminish significantly once they are viewed as indispensable coalition partners and are able to intimidate the electorate with the authority of the state behind them.
When I make decisions, I'm not thinking about my parents. I'm thinking about my children.
An Israeli soldier is raised on values of respecting human life, and they don't change their values when they turn 18 and enter the army.
Something that truly frustrates me is the impression in Israel that when you are talking about security, you are bold; you are tough: this is what we need against all the enemies that we have. And when someone is talking about peace, you know, it's the naive left wing, soft.
I don't envy my teachers. I used to preach to them.
The Palestinian national movement is not an Islamic religious movement.
The world cannot afford a nuclear Iran.
A romantic relationship requires honesty between a couple.
The fact that a terrorist was killed, and it doesn't matter if it was in Dubai or Gaza, is good news to those fighting terrorism.
Turkey knows the importance of its ties with Israel; it knows it's in the same moderate camp with Israel, the moderate Palestinians and other Muslim countries, and the threat to Turkey is not from us.
Israel has a problem not because of the perception that the entire world is against us, but because of the government's problematic policies.
Most of the Israelis reside in settlement blocs which will be part of the state of Israel in the future, and they will remain in their homes.
Everybody wants to live in peace.
My ideology is not connected to the Palestinians.
I'm not asking myself, 'How I can be different from Netanyahu?' because I am different, and Kadima is different from Likud, by its own nature.
Radical Islamist terror is a crime against the entire free world, including against Israel.
It's important to be the gatekeeper against dangerous ideas.
I'm not a person of mentors.
Israel is part of the free world led by the United States, no matter what.
I believe most of the public should be involved in the election of the leadership.
I was by Ariel Sharon's side on the day it was decided to form Kadima. It was founded in aim to create a government of hope and responsibility.
There is a mutual interest between Israel and the United States of America. It is more than friendship - it is friendship plus mutual interest, and it is bipartisan.
I want Israel to be a normal state, part of the international community, part of the free world, but unique in terms of the Jewish people. I want both.
Sept. 11 was a shock to the whole world.
The Iranians are abusing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to gain more support from radical elements in the region.
As leaders, we in Israel must take into account the concerns of diaspora Jewry. Israel is strong enough to take criticism from within the family of Jews who say, 'OK, we disapprove of Israeli policy, but we stand firm for Israel.'
We must draw a distinction between understanding and supporting Israel's values and existence, and criticising any Israeli government's policy.
The last thing that Israel needs is to be part of the internal agenda in the United States between Republicans and Democrats.
The Israeli people deserve better than a life in between rounds of violence.
I have come to fight for peace, and I will not give my hand to those who try to turn the word 'peace' into a dirty one.
My responsibility is to ask, 'How can I serve my ideology and my voters?'
Being an Israeli is to know that you have risen from the ashes of those who were killed and knowing you have a responsibility for the coming generations.
Relations between countries are built on values and interests and many other things, but at the end of the day, leaders are also only human beings.
Democracy is not only the right to vote, it is also about not resorting to violence in order to reach political goals and respecting agreements signed by former governments.
