Mohamed ElBaradei Country Quotations

Libya is a good example of a country that has come to a realization that weapons of mass destruction threaten more than assure, and I hope that will be followed by others.

Well, first of all, we now have everybody with the exception of India, Pakistan, and Israel, and I dont think these three countries are going to join by simply providing them an incentive, in terms of technology.

America is always a good target for a populist. In many countries, particularly authoritarian systems, if you want to get an extra bonus, you bash the Americans.

If we are addressing the issue of weapons of mass destruction, we need to send a uniform, consistent message that there is zero tolerance to any country who is developing weapons of mass destruction, North Korea included.

Nobody wants any country to have nuclear weapons.

I still believe that any country understands that if they use nuclear weapons, they will be wiped out of existence. They could be irrational in many ways, but I don't think they're irrational to the point that they're ready to annihilate their own country.

I think one country with nuclear weapons is one country too many.

Every country has the right to nuclear technology as long as they use it safely, peacefully and in a secure way.

If a country is suspected of going nuclear, you need to understand why. Why does it feel insecure?

Managing a country is like managing a company in many ways. It maybe involves more complicated issues, but its the same skills.

We must abandon the unworkable notion that it is morally reprehensible for some countries to pursue weapons of mass destruction, yet morally acceptable for others to rely on them for security - and indeed to continue to refine their capacities and postulate plans for their use

I argue that for every country to have an independent fuel cycle is the wrong way to go. Because any country which has a complete fuel cycle is a latent nuclear weapons country, in the sense that it is not far from making a nuclear weapon.

You need to address a package of measures. You know, security, economics, humanitarian. At the end of the day, you need to make the country feel secure enough that they do not feel the temptation or the drive to develop nuclear weapons.

We cannot afford to have every country be sitting on an enrichment factory.

If every country continues to exercise that right, we are going in the next 10 or 20 years to have 30 or 40 countries, in my estimation, who are virtual nuclear weapon states,

You cannot apply your high standards to a country [Egypt] burdened with decades of autocratic rule. Our democracy is still in its infancy.