Statement by the President on the Agreements for the Establishment of a Global Communications Satellite System.
OVER THE YEARS of man's history on this earth, men have undertaken many explorations of distant horizons. But, in all this long span, no new horizon has so clearly beckoned for nations to work together as the horizons of space.
Today it is a cause of gratification among men everywhere that 11 nations are this afternoon joining together to lay the foundation for an immeasurably valuable new use of space as medium for international communications.
The two agreements signed today provide for the establishment of a global commercial communications satellite system. These agreements are firm expressions of the policy written into the law of our land by the will of our people.
The United States--from the beginning of the age of space--has sought and encouraged cooperation among all nations for peaceful and practical uses of this new dimension. These agreements fulfill that objective.
We will continue to seek--as we have sought--the fullest measure of cooperation by all nations on this earth for the peaceful use of the realms of space around us.
These agreements are open for signatures by all countries that are members of the International Telecommunication Union. Countries that do not sign the agreements will be able to use the global system.
The prospects for development of communications systems in space outrun our imagination. In the future, the voices, messages, and pictures will span the barriers of distance on earth and bring men and nations closer together in understanding and cooperation.
By 1965 an experimental operational satellite is expected to link North America and Europe. In 1966 and 1967 a system will be launched to provide global coverage--for the first time.
The benefits will be many to all of mankind.
We mark this day with pride and confidence--pride that nations are working together and we work with them--confidence that from such cooperation will come sure progress toward fulfillment of man's great hope for finding in our times the basis of honorable and universal peace.
Note: The agreements were reached at the International Conference to Establish Interim Arrangements for a Global Commercial Communication Satellite System, held in Washington, July 21-24, 1964. The meeting was the culmination of a series of conferences and discussions held during the previous year, and was attended by representatives of 18 nations. The U.S. delegation was headed by G. Griffith Johnson, Assistant Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, who served as chairman.
The text of the agreements and of a communiqué issued at the close of the conference is printed in the Department of State Bulletin (vol. 51, P. 281).
Lyndon B. Johnson, Statement by the President on the Agreements for the Establishment of a Global Communications Satellite System. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/241860