Stalin: stop sending people to kill me. We've already captured five of them, one of them with a bomb and another with a rifle... If you don't stop sending killers, I'll send one to Moscow, and I won't have to send a second.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Tito warns Stalin that Yugoslavia has captured Soviet assassins and threatens to retaliate by sending an assassin to Moscow.
- In plain terms
- If you keep trying to kill me, I will send someone to kill you.
- What can you take from it?
- Mutual threat can deter aggression between leaders.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What limits exist on retaliation between states?
- How do leaders signal resolve without war?
Another view
It escalates violence rather than resolving the underlying dispute.
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Yugoslavia is a nation of six states, five cultures, four languages, three religions, two alphabets, but one political party.
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