"John Kennedy, who was assassinated in November 1963, left an ambiguous Cold War legacy. In his June 1963 American University commencement address he expressed optimism over achieving peaceful coexistence with the Soviet Union. But within two weeks he set out to Europe to reassure his NATO allies of America’s commitment to their defense (while also appealing for a greater contribution on their part), and in West Berlin he denounced the brutal system on the other side of the wall and chided those who believed “we can work with the communists.” Moreover, the otherwise prudent Kennedy markedly increased US military aid and advisers to the embattled government of South Vietnam and shortly before his death also authorized the generals’ successful coup against Diệm, thus expanding America’s responsibility for another, even more distant, and indefensible ally."
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Presidents of the United StatesDemocratic Party (United States) politiciansMembers of the United States SenatePoliticians from BostonUnited States presidential candidates, 1960
Original Language: English
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Sources
Carole C. Fink, The Cold War: An International History, p. 115
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy
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