We told them this morning and I think they (reacted) like you would expect. It was a surprise and the reality of this is very sobering for everybody. I don't take this lightly at all not at all.

Military operations cannot be tidy or free of friction - particularly in a coalition whose contributing nations see the campaign through national prisms.

You cannot expect soldiers to change people's minds. That has to be done in other ways.

Look, we're living in a crazy time right now. There's a lot of craziness going on in the world and in the United States in particular.

The system is broken, and we can fix it. It's not hard. We just have to do the work.

Everything starts and finishes with the soldier.

A lot of networks don't want to touch controversial subjects, and especially stuff that deals with race and history.

The Russians are a very sentimental people.

Soldiering is a very important profession, is it not?

Not much over £1,000 a month for the private soldier on operations is hardly an impressive figure.

Missing your lunch is not exactly the end of the world.

The key function of a leader is, to build more leaders.

I think bolstering free trade is a boon to the dollar.

Children need close friends to help them grow up, to discover things about themselves and about life. They also need close friends to keep them sane

They'll remember you if you're the best reader in class-or if you throw up at lunch.

Now my eyes are turned from the South to the North, and I want to lead one more Expedition. This will be the last... to the North Pole.

It takes courage to recognize the real as opposed to the convenient.

It's hard to wake from a nightmare when the nightmare is real.

It is great that soccer can unite people for one day. It is something politics has often tried, and we were able to do it today. All people became brothers.

He is a lyric poet . . . aloof from the swirling currents in which many of his colleagues are immersed.

People now, especially with the Internet, are connected. They have an expectation of behaviour, of accountability, avoiding conflict and fair and just competition.