STEP #8 - The Atlantic Charter
The Atlantic Charter was negotiated at the Atlantic Conference (codenamed RIVIERA) by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, aboard warships in a secure anchorage near Newfoundland. At the August, 1941 conference, Churchill had come hoping for a military commitment from the United States in their war against Germany. Instead, he settled for a declaration of principles called the Atlantic Charter. In this document, the two leaders spelled out the causes for which World War II was fought--even before the United States officially entered the conflict. The two sides also agreed to a series of goals that would foster international peace and security. The leaders pledged in this statement to work towards a postwar world that upheld the principles of self-governance and freedom for every country. The charter pledged both Great Britain and the United States to ...
(1) seek no territorial expansion
(2) pursue no territorial changes without the consent of the inhabitants
(3) respect the right of people to choose their own form of government
(4) promote free trade among nations
(5) encourage international cooperation to improve peoples' lives
(6) build a secure peace based on freedom from want and fear
(7) work for disarmament of aggressors
(8) establish a "permanent system of general security."
(1) seek no territorial expansion
(2) pursue no territorial changes without the consent of the inhabitants
(3) respect the right of people to choose their own form of government
(4) promote free trade among nations
(5) encourage international cooperation to improve peoples' lives
(6) build a secure peace based on freedom from want and fear
(7) work for disarmament of aggressors
(8) establish a "permanent system of general security."
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Although it was neither an alliance nor a binding legal commitment, the agreement articulated the shared goals of Britain and the United States to end territorial aggression and war around the world. By the end of the following month, 15 other countries, all opposed to Nazi Germany, had signed the Atlantic Charter as well. The agreement will set the stage for a large alliance, should the United States enter the war in Europe.
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