I did not have a very literary background. I came to poetry from the sciences and mathematics and also through an interest in Japanese and Chinese poetry in translation.

Poetry is the revelation of a feeling that the poet believes to be interior and personal which the reader recognizes as his own.

In their heyday the Pet Shop Boys were the Interpol of the Eighties dressing up to sing really weird pop songs about lust and loneliness in the big city. They're low-pro now not retro-worshipped in the manner of Depeche Mode New Order or The Cure but you can hear the reason why - these guys are too sad.

The conflict in the Middle East needs to be solved for the same reasons. It is necessary to reach a two-states solution built on international law for sustainable peace and development and it can only be achieved through joint efforts by the international community.

One of the gaps in our international development efforts is the provision of global public goods - that is goods or conditions we need that no individual or country can secure on their own such as halting global warming financial stability and peace and security.

In a case like Iraq the UN has again shown what important role it plays as the guarantor for protecting international peace and stability in the global political structure.

A desire arises in the mind. It is satisfied immediately another comes. In the interval which separates two desires a perfect calm reigns in the mind. It is at this moment freed from all thought love or hate. Complete peace equally reigns between two mental waves.

Too often in the past U.S. leaders have forced Israel to pay the price for American strategic interests in the Middle East - through concessions in the peace process as well as passivity in the face of Iraqi attacks.

Only the change on the international scene the crisis in the gulf and the strong firm position of the United States against aggression between two Arab countries created realities that led to the Madrid Peace Conference.

As a privileged survivor of the First World War I hope I may be allowed to interject here a deeply felt tribute to those who were not fortunate enough to succeed but who shared the signal honor of trying to the last to salvage peace.