Sept. 25, 1961 - President Kennedy said today that the Western powers would stand firm on West Berlin, but he emphasized that they wished to negotiate and were not committed to a "rigid formula." In a 38-minute address before the U.N. General Assembly, the President warned of the danger of a nuclear war if the Soviet Union should attempt to override Western interests and commitments without engaging in negotiations "rooted in mutual respect and concern for the rights of others." President Kennedy declared that the Allies would use "whatever means are forced upon them" to defend "their obligations and their access to the free citizens of West Berlin and the self-determination of those citizens."
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