June 10, 1963 | JFK "Peace Speech" at American University

June 10, 1963 - President Kennedy proposed a “strategy of peace” today to lead the U.S. and the Soviet Union out of the “vicious and dangerous cycle” of the cold war. As a first step, the President announced that high-ranking representatives of the U.S., Britain, and the Soviet Union would meet in Moscow soon in a renewed effort to agree on a treaty banning nuclear weapons tests. He announced also that the U.S., “to make clear our good faith and solemn conviction on the matter,” would refrain from tests in the atmosphere so long as others did likewise. The President’s speech at commencement exercises at American University in Washington, D.C., was dedicated to the theme that the time had come for a break in the cold war and that both the U.S. and the Soviet Union should re-examine their basic attitude toward each other. “Our hopes must be tempered with the caution of history,” said Mr. Kennedy, “but with our hopes go the hopes of all mankind.”

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