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What argument did the Athenians make in the Melian Dialogue?

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Thucydides Thucydides manuscript, 3rd century bc (Hamburg, Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek, P. Hamburg 163).

In the "Melian Dialogue," as recorded by the historian Thucydides, the Athenians present an argument framed in absolute terms regarding the relationship between the powerful and the weak. Rather than focusing on specific provocations or legal justifications, the Athenian position centers on the principle that the strong do what they can and the weak must suffer what they must.1

The Athenians argue that the Melians should submit to their authority to avoid destruction, effectively dismissing appeals to justice, neutrality, or the Melians' Dorian ancestry. The dialogue serves as a stark exploration of power politics, where the Athenians demand submission as a necessity of their imperial expansion in the Aegean, ultimately presenting the Melians with a choice between subjugation and annihilation.12