A first image argument could be put forward according to which certain leaders contributed to a greater destabilization of the international system. For example, Hitler was an unpredictable amalgam of Kaiser Wilhelm's hegemonic ambitions and Bismarck's Machiavellian statesmanship. According to Mearshimer, “not only did he pit his adversaries against each other, but he [convinced] them that Nazi Germany had benevolent intentions” (Mearshimer 2001: 216). Nevertheless, his concern for security and the consolidation of Germany as a powerful nation within the international system was no different from that of his predecessors. Consistent with this intention, Hitler was not single-handedly responsible for starting World War II, just as William II could not declare war on the Triple Entente before the Archduke's assassination..