Address of President Roosevelt at Chautauqua, New York, August 11, 1905

Address of President Roosevelt at Chautauqua, New York, August 11, 1905

The Monroe Doctrine is not a part of international law. But it is the fundamental feature of our entire foreign policy so far as the Western Hemisphere is concerned,[2] and it has more and more been meeting with recognition abroad. The reason why it is meeting with this recognition is because we have not allowed it to become fossilized, but have adapted our construction of it to meet the growing, changing needs of this hemisphere. Fossilization, of course, means death, whether to an individual, a government, or a doctrine. It is out of the question to claim a right and yet shirk the responsibility for exercising[3] that right. When we announce a policy such as the Monroe Doctrine we thereby commit ourselves to accepting the consequences of the policy, and these consequences from time to time alter. Let us look for a moment at what the Monroe Doctrine really is. It forbids the territorial encroachment of non-American powers on American soil. Its purpose is partly to secure this Nation against seeing great military powers obtain new footholds in the Western Hemisphere, and partly to[4] secure to our fellow-republics south of us the chance to develop along their own lines without being oppressed or conquered by non-American powers. As we have grown more and more powerful our advocacy of this doctrine has been received with more and more respect; but what has tended most to give the doctrine standing among the nations is our growing willingness to show that we not only mean what we say and are prepared to back it up, but that we mean to recognize[5] our obligations to foreign peoples no less than to insist upon our own rights. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 68309
Author: Roosevelt, Theodore
Release Date: Jun 14, 2022
Format: eBook
Language: English
Publisher: Government Printing Office
Publication Date: 1905
Publisher Country: United States