Quotes from Ehud Olmert

Israel always has to be in a position to defend itself against any adversary and against any threat of any kind.

I sometimes feel tired. But there are so many reasons for being tired.

There is always a human being behind the titles and the status.

I always admired the tolerance of my family - you know, that they tolerated my dissension for the family consensus.

When public figures write memoirs, there is always some indecision regarding how much they want to write of things as they were and how much they want to cut corners to avoid riling up others. I decided to write my memoirs exactly as they were, and I will not digress - not when things are ill at ease and not when they are comfortable.

Political leaders can help change the psychological climate which affects the quality of relationships among people.

Historic scores cannot be settled, and scars cannot be obliterated.

It is impossible to think of a world in which America was not there in the honorable service of humanity.

When the President of Iran talks about removing Israel from the face of the Earth and is building nuclear bombs with a range of 3000km, you have to be worried.

I always wake up early Saturday morning, and I have a little bit more time, so I go to the gym.

Already at the time of Israel's birth, Ben-Gurion extended his hand in peace to the Arab nations. His hand was rejected, but it remains extended.

The legacies of Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat, of Yitzhak Rabin and King Hussein, stand as an inspiration for all who work for peace.

Saudi Arabia is the country that in the end will determine the ability of the Arabs to reach a compromise with Israel.

As one of the participants in the Aqaba summit, I can testify that Israel fully expected the Palestinian Authority's newly reorganized and trained security agencies to take harsh action against the rejectionists who sought to wreck the peace process.

I know the war in Iraq is controversial in the States, but for us in the Middle East it has made a great and significant impact.

It's a problem sometimes when you speak to journalists. They quote you, and then they read what they wrote, and then they even explain it. It's dangerous.

How are fears born? They are born because of differences in tradition and history; they are born because of differences in emotional, political and national circumstances. Because of such differences, people fear they cannot live together.

What's the logic of investing millions in agriculture if it will not pay off?

International economic and political sanctions on Iran, as crucial as they may be, are only an initial step, and must be dramatically increased.

In Israel we tend to be carried away by our emotions.

We are the greatest experts in the world in criticizing our country, but no one loves his country more than the Israelis. No one.

I've been mayor of the city of Jerusalem, which is perhaps, in some ways, more complex and more difficult than a ministerial position.

Growing up in Israel, how can I not be an optimist? When you remember what Israel was 50 years ago and you see Israel now, one of the most successful countries in the world, stable, democratic, with an enormously stable economy despite everything that has happened in the global economy in the last few years, how can I not be an optimist?

There is nothing that I'd love to do more than negotiate with Palestinians. This is my desire. This is my dream. This is my mission.