Analyse
Einstein’s 1930 *New York Times* piece (titled *'To the Heroes of the War Resisters'*) emphasized moral resistance over militarism and supported a supranational authority to prevent war, aligning with the *sentiment* of the quoted statement. However, the specific phrasing—'**Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding**'—does not appear verbatim in that article or his known 1930 writings. The line closely resembles later paraphrases of his views (e.g., in 1950s anti-nuclear advocacy) and may be a condensed distillation of his philosophy. Without a direct citation from the *Times* in 1930, the attribution is *partially accurate* but lacks precise sourcing.
Achtergrond
Einstein was a vocal pacifist in the 1920–30s, though his stance evolved post-WWII to support *limited* military action against fascism. His 1930 *New York Times* contribution argued that war resistance required systemic change, not violence, and he later expanded these ideas in essays like *'Why War?'* (1932, with Freud). The quoted phrase circulates widely online but is often misattributed to specific texts without primary-source verification.
Samenvatting verdict
While Einstein *did* advocate for a world government in 1930 and frequently spoke on peace, this exact phrasing appears to be a paraphrase of his broader ideas rather than a direct, verified quote from the *New York Times* that year.