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You will notice that France, Germany Russia, China are against this decision. It is clearly a decision that is motivated by George W. Bush's desire to please the arms and oil industries in the United States of America. If you look at those factors, you'll see that an individual like myself, a man who has lost power and influence, can never be a suitable mediator.

Nelson Mandela#83

PoliticsDiplomacyPowerGeopoliticsInfluenceInternational

About this quote

What does it mean?
Mandela critiques a UN decision as motivated by US interests, noting his own lack of influence makes him unsuitable for mediation.
In plain terms
He rejects mediation because powerful nations prioritize oil and arms interests.
What can you take from it?
Influence depends on alignment with powerful interests, not moral authority.

Where it applies

  • international relations
  • conflict mediation
  • UN decisions

Putting it to work

  • assess motives
  • recognize power dynamics
  • evaluate credibility

Questions to consider

  • What makes a mediator effective?
  • How do interests shape global decisions?

Another view

Dismissing mediation based on lost influence limits potential for neutral moral voice.

More from Nelson Mandela

  1. If I am asked, by credible organizations, to mediate, I will consider that very seriously. But a situation of this nature does not need an individual, it needs…

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  2. Neither Bush nor Tony Blair has provided any evidence that such weapons exist. But what we know is that Israel has weapons of mass destruction. Nobody talks ab…

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  3. As we find ourselves in jobless economies, societies in which small minorities consume while the masses starve, we find ourselves forced to rethink the rationa…

    Permalink to quote #81

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