Politics & Power Quote by Condoleezza Rice

Risk is baked into the sentence, but so is a sales pitch. Rice opens by lowering expectations - "Success is not assured" - a preemptive hedge that inoculates policymakers against the likely disappointment of Middle East diplomacy. It is the language of managed outcomes: if the initiative fails, it was always framed as a long shot; if it shows any movement, the administration can claim foresight and grit.

Then comes the pivot to posture: "America is resolute". The phrase is less about resolve as emotion than resolve as brand. It signals steadiness to allies and warns spoilers that Washington intends to keep leaning in, even as the earlier clause admits limits. That tension is the subtext: the US cannot guarantee a deal, but it can guarantee pressure, attention, and the choreography of a process.

"Best chance for peace... for some years to come" compresses urgency into a narrow window. It suggests a volatile regional timetable - elections, leadership succession, violence cycles - without naming any of it, making the claim feel inevitable rather than contingent. It also subtly disciplines the parties: if they miss this moment, they are responsible for wasting a rare opening.

"Helping Israelis and Palestinians seize this chance" casts the US as facilitator, not imposer. The verb "seize" implies agency and courage on the ground, while conveniently shifting accountability outward: Washington can "help", but the protagonists must act. In context, Rice is advancing a diplomatic push (the era of the Road Map/Annapolis-style process) meant to project American leadership and stabilize a region under strain, while keeping the inevitable gap between rhetoric and results rhetorically covered.