“I feel impelled to speak today in a language that in a sense is new—one which I, who have spent so much of my life in the military profession, would have preferred never to use. That new language is the language of atomic warfare.”
- October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969
- American
- The 34th President of the United States, General, Military Leader
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Quote
“I feel impelled to speak today in a language that in a sense is new—one which I, who have spent so much of my life in the military profession, would have preferred never to use. That new language is the language of atomic warfare.”
Explanation
In this solemn and reflective statement, Eisenhower introduces a moral and strategic reckoning with the dawn of the nuclear age. Despite his long military career, he expresses deep discomfort in having to speak of war not merely in terms of soldiers and tactics, but in terms of atomic devastation. The “new language” signifies a grim shift in global affairs, where the stakes of conflict now involve the potential annihilation of civilizations.
This quote comes from Eisenhower’s 1953 speech to the United Nations titled “Atoms for Peace.” Delivered early in his presidency, it marked a turning point in how the U.S. approached nuclear weapons—not just as tools of deterrence, but as a global responsibility. After World War II and the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the world stood on the edge of a new era. Eisenhower’s statement underscores the burden he felt as a leader, having to grapple with weapons whose power dwarfed anything seen before in human history.
The quote remains profoundly relevant today, as nations continue to navigate the risks of nuclear proliferation, deterrence doctrine, and potential technological escalation. Eisenhower’s discomfort reminds us that nuclear arms are not just strategic assets—they are existential threats. His hope, as later expressed in the same speech, was to shift toward peaceful uses of atomic energy, highlighting the enduring challenge of channeling human innovation toward survival rather than destruction.
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