32 Quotes by Bob Ainsworth

Stalin's policies pushed the world into the Cold War. Putin has the potential to be equally as dangerous.

The last thing we want to do is to go into an area and inflict unnecessary civilian casualties. One is too many.

We have tended in politics in this country to concentrate on the domestic, on the here and now - the 'what's in it for me'.

You have to make the compromise: resign, stay out of the government, and you can say what you like... but no one has to do anything about it.

As the Chief of the Defence Staff says, you don't defend on the goal line. Defending the interests of the U.K. means tackling threats early and at source, and that means intervening overseas.

I am extremely honoured to be the Defence Secretary, and I would not do the job if I did not think that I could make a useful contribution in the role.

I'll tell you what I do have: I have a good feel for ordinary people, for politics, and those are my strengths. I understand, I hope instinctively, where many of our Armed Forces come from.

The reasoning for our civil-military plan is that lasting success will be when the Afghan government, security forces and people can resist the insurgents and terrorists themselves.

The war in Afghanistan is too important to be reduced to a political football. We are fighting there to protect our national security. We are confronting the Taliban-led insurgency to prevent terrorists returning to that country.