What the Russian Atomic Bomb Means to America
On October 12, 1949, two weeks after President Harry Truman announced that Russia had developed the atom bomb, Gen. Omar Bradley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, delivers a speech about the impact of this discovery on American policy.
Related Speeches & Audio (10)
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What the Russian Atomic Bomb Means to America
What the Russian Atomic Bomb Means to AmericaAudio Clip (5:13)
Audio Clip (5:13)
On October 12, 1949, two weeks after President Harry Truman announced that Russia had developed the atom bomb, Gen. Omar Bradley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, delivers a speech about the impact of this discovery on American policy.
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Russia Has A-Bomb
Russia Has A-BombAudio Clip (0:56)
Audio Clip (0:56)
In the January 5, 1951, episode of Edward R. Murrow's Hear It Now radio broadcast, Atomic Energy Commissioner Gordon Deane fields questions from reporters about Russia's possession of the atomic bomb.
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U.S.-Soviet Tension Builds
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Audio Clip (2:32)
On February 28, 1946, Secretary of State James Byrnes addresses the Overseas Press Club to discuss the purposes of the United Nations. In his speech, Byrnes makes an indirect reference to the Soviet Union when he declares that the United States is prepared to "act to prevent aggression."
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Eisenhower Weighs Chance for Peace in the Cold War
Eisenhower Weighs Chance for Peace in the Cold WarAudio Clip (3:40)
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On April 16, 1953, after the death of Russian Premier Joseph Stalin, President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivers what is known as his “Cross of Iron” speech before the American Society for Newspaper Editors, contrasting the philosophies of the Soviet Union and the United States.
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Reagan Announces "Star Wars"
Reagan Announces "Star Wars"Audio Clip (1:39)
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On March 23, 1983, in what later became known as his "Star Wars" speech, President Ronald Reagan announces his plans to develop an anti-missile capability to counter the threat of Soviet ballistic missiles and to make these nuclear weapons "impotent and obsolete."
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U.S. and U.S.S.R. Tussle Over Germany
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Upon his return from commanding U.S. occupation forces in Germany, Gen. Lucius Clay holds a press conference on May 17, 1949, and fields questions about the growing tension between the United States and the Soviets over the division of Germany.
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The Eisenhower Doctrine
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In order to suppress growing Soviet influence in the Middle East following the Suez Crisis of 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower appears before a joint session of Congress on January 5, 1957, to present a policy that will become known as the Eisenhower Doctrine. It holds that the United States would be authorized to provide military assistance "to secure and protect the territorial integrity" of any nations threatened by international communism.
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Bush and Gorbachev Sign the START I Treaty
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On July 31, 1991, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty was signed in Moscow by U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, committing each superpower to reducing nuclear arms by a third. In a press conference held at the Kremlin, President Bush discusses the economic cooperation implicit in the peace negotiations.
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Franklin D. Roosevelt Delivers D-Day Prayer
Franklin D. Roosevelt Delivers D-Day PrayerAudio Clip (3:37)
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In a national radio broadcast on June 6, 1944, as 160,000 Allied troops land in Normandy in an attempt to liberate France, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asks America to join him in a prayer.
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Reagan Addresses British Parliament
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On June 8, 1982, in the first speech by an American president to a meeting of both houses of the British Parliament, President Ronald Reagan presents his hope for a future that would "leave Marxism-Leninism on the ash heap of history."
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