Toomas Hendrik Ilves, President of Estonia (2006-present)
"Freedom of the press as the foundation of an informed public and hence democracy remains under threat. We believed that once communism fell, all the good things – democracy, rule of law and freedom of expression would automatically and naturally follow. But the world turned out to be far more complex. One doesn’t need an ideological edifice to defend tyranny, simple thuggery in defence of power suffices. Should we be surprised? Probably not. After all, we knew it would be a hard road to make democracy work; we knew that it would not spring up overnight. This is one reason why the calls to shut down the radios, which began when I was a child, were a regular feature of my nine years at the Radios in the 80s and early 90s, remain naïve, short-sighted and misplaced." (May 12, 2009)

Hillary Rodham Clinton, U.S. Secretary of State (2009-present)
"RFE/RL is smart power. Smart power takes smart people, people who are dedicated, who understand the mission of communication and free expression and reaching out to the rest of the world. You really do represent everything that we are trying to achieve." (April 4, 2009)

Rangin Dadfar Spanta, Foreign Minister of Afghanistan (2006-present)
"I listen to [Radio Azadi] every morning before I go to work. I truly believe this radio plays a very important role in the development of democracy, protection of human rights and freedom of speech. We encourage you to continue. You have more listeners in the country than any radio. People trust you and rely on your news and information." (January 2009)

Condoleezza Rice, U.S. Secretary of State (2005-2009)
 "For people behind the Iron Curtain, Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty were their virtual passports out of tyranny and into freedom. RFE/RL's take[s] those same basic ideas – that men, women and children can and must be free – and speak[s] them loudly for people in Baghdad, Kabul, Tehran and all over the world. Liberty cannot be crushed because it exists in the hearts and minds of people. I know that many of you at RFE/RL have lost colleagues and friends. They've been gunned down and they've been kidnapped because the price of freedom is often great. But the benefit of freedom is always worth it." (RFE/RL Prague headquarters, July 8, 2008)

Jalal Talabani, President of Iraq (2005-present)
“Since 1998, Radio Free Iraq was an important source of in-depth, uncensored, and objective news and infromation for the people of Iraq, who lived under the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein … At times, it became a bridge between Iraq and the world. It connected the people of Iraq with their democratic leaders and opinion makers, who were outside Iraq.” (RFE/RL Prague headquarters, October 5, 2005)

Jiri Paroubek, former Prime Minister of the Czech Republic (2005-2006)
The totalitarian regime here was always trying to fight [Radio] Free Europe[/Radio Liberty], and at the same time it vainly tried to marginalize it. Statements made in its direction - sometimes hateful, sometimes lampooning - would clearly give away the nervousness of the government of that time, caused by the fact that its monopoly on truth was standing on shaky legs. And we understood that nervousness. If I recall something from these unhappy days with pleasure, it is this absurd drama of the seeds of truth seeping secretly, but somehow eagerly, through the mechanical sounds of the jamming, when the most electrifying question among our friends was "have you heard...?" We all played that game at that time. It was as if [Radio] Free Europe[/Radio Liberty] didn't exist, no one listened to it, and yet everyone knew it. (On the 10th Anniversary of the Radios’ move to Prague, September 12, 2005)

George W. Bush, President of the United States (2001-2009)
"Dwight Eisenhower said this of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty—‘The simplest and clearest charter in the world is what you have, which is to tell the truth.’ And for more than 50 years, the charter has been faithfully executed, and it's the truth that sets [Europe] free." (November 20, 2002)

Joseph R. Biden, U.S. Senator (1972-2009)
"Elected members of the [Russian] Duma, in one case a non-elected leader of one of the political factions—said: "Senator, there is overwhelming corruption in our country, and we have no way of getting our message out except Radio Free Europe. Please, we need the radios now more than we did during the Cold War." (Remarks to RFE/RL staff, March 1997)

Mostapha Zahir, Afghan Ambassador to Italy and former Crown Prince
"Radio Free Afghanistan has played a crucial role in the past few months in delivering up-to-date and correct information about the current situation in Afghanistan. Just to give you a small example. We were driving from Kabul to Kandahar, and the only station we could hear at that hour, at that time, was Radio Free Afghanistan, and we stopped at an oasis just outside of Moqor, and I noticed two elderly gentleman and one young person were listening to a radio. But I also noticed the cover was of an ornate design that they had lovingly built for this radio, and I asked them what they were doing. And they said: 'Well, sir, we are listening to the news.' And I said: 'Is this battery operated or electrical?' And they said: 'Well, we don't have electricity here. We have to buy batteries for it. And we will forgo three or four or five days of wages, but we would rather buy those batteries and not eat for a day or two, but we have to have the flow of free information coming in about our country.' So, I'm convinced." (July 17, 2002)

Vaclav Havel, former President of the Czech Republic (1993-2003)
“All through the long years of communism, the Radio provided the only avenue for free exchange of information, for free journalism and also the only, or rather, the main source for communication between the opposition at home with the public, the general society, and the nation. I believe that our society owes Radio Free Europe immense gratitude for the role it has played in the past. (On the 50th Anniversary of RFE/RL, May 2001)

Petar Stoyanov, President of the Republic of Bulgaria (1997-2002)
"Not only Bulgarian society, but the societies in all Central and East European countries [still] need a radio station like RFE. I remember the euphoria right after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the belief we all held that it was only a matter of a few years to leave everything behind and achieve the standards of the West. Today we must say "farewell" to all of these illusions. The fall of the Berlin Wall got rid of the most immediate dangers of communism, but we now face no less difficult and important issues in our transition from a dictatorship to a free society... We forgot that democracy is, first of all, about society's ability to face challenges. And it is in this context that I see a new role for RFE and nongovernmental organizations such as the one to which I now belong." (May 4, 2001)

Eduard Shevardnadze, President of the Republic of Georgia (1995-2003)
"Many assumed that with the end of the Cold War, the raison d'etre of Radio Liberty might actually cease to exist. I have always been, and remain, in opposition to this notion. Why? Because the inertia of totalitarian thinking has not ceased to exist. Because many challenges and questions await response. Therefore, rather than yield to complacent voices, you must remain the stalwart champion of democratic ideals." (May 3, 2001)

Guntis Ulmanis, President of the Republic of Latvia (1993-1999)
"There have been times when Radio Free Europe was the only source of truth, the only ray of hope, and we all were active listeners, although there were attempts to forbid this and there were attempts to overshadow it. However, our hope for Latvia's future strengthened, and this is thanks to RFE [which] has been giving hope to those who were keeping the fire of freedom alive on the other side of the Iron Curtain. And once again we can today thank RFE that this hope has found its fulfillment" (May 11, 1999)

Richard von Weizsaecker, President of the Federal Republic of Germany (1984-1994)
"I am grateful for everything which you have done, and which you are still doing. Not only to give free information, to serve free speech, and to spread freedom, but also to remind all of us that it is not enough to fight for freedom, but also to prove that freedom and responsibility—whenever we have achieved freedom—are quite inseparable" (February 26, 1999)

Grigoriy Yavlinski, former Chairman, Yabloko Party (Russia)
"To put it bluntly: the more lies in the country, the greater the importance of Radio Liberty. Right now the level of official lying in Russia is very high, so Radio Liberty's role is more important than ever before... If you Americans could listen to Radio Liberty, you would know much more about what is going on in Russia." (September 19, 1996)

Boris Yeltsin, President of the Russian Federation (1991-1999)
"It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of your contribution to the destruction of the totalitarian [Soviet] regime. No less important are your efforts to inform listeners in Russia about events in our country and abroad. We... rely on your objective illumination of Russian and international events... and in protecting democratic reforms." (March, 1993)

Lech Walesa, founder of Solidarity movement and former President of Poland (1990-1995)
Question: During the growth of Solidarity and your political rise, did the Radios have any effect upon your domestic activity?
Mr. Walesa: Ladies and gentlemen, the degree cannot even be described. Would there be an earth without the sun? (November 19, 1989)