Charlie Rose interviews Zbigniew Brzezinski, Henry Kissinger and Brent Scowcroft

That Obama/Pakistan thread reminded me of this great interview months back. Every presidential candidate should've watched this and asked more.

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CHARLIE ROSE: You talk about that, global Balkan struggle.

ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI: That's right. Well, I think there's a further dimension to it. I think Brent is quite right in focusing on that geographic part of the world.

CHARLIE ROSE: It really runs from the Suez Canal all the way over to the border of China.

CHARLIE ROSE: Brings in India, Pakistan, the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, as well as Turkey ...

ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI: Right.

CHARLIE ROSE: ... India, Pakistan...

ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI: I call that the global Balkans, because in some ways, it's similar to the European Balkans, which were internally conflicted, but had a suction effect on major powers, and that whole region is having that effect.

And I think we are really facing as a country the real risk of becoming bogged down in this larger spectrum of the global Balkans. And if we get bogged down, two things will happen. First of all, we're going to be largely alone. Most of the world will not be with us. A few client states, but that's all. And secondly, our global power will gradually be dissipated; our global standing will be undermined.

So we do face a very serious strategic, historical challenge, which we need to think through, and regarding which we need to draw some lessons, and be willing to change course.

CHARLIE ROSE: OK, let me -- Henry, but the lessons are what?

ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI: The lessons are that acting alone in a world that's alive in political stirring is to condemn oneself to isolation and probably protracted warfare of the kind that can be dissipating. The kind of problem that we face in Iraq is a little bit the kind of problem that Israel faced in dealing with Hezbollah. If the conflict, the theater of conflict enlarges, it's going to become more and more absorbing and more and more costly.