The act I sign this morning authorizes the United States of America to ratify the charter of the Asian Development Bank.

So today we have come here to the historic East Room of the White House and gathered at this place to start a journey together.

In accepting this award this morning, I want to declare once again that so long as I am in public office, I am going to do everything within my power and my capability to prevent us from falling behind.

I believe that those who make that case are no less patriotic and no less sincere than those who believe that we cannot shorten the length of our reach into the world.

I hope they, too, expect me to try to keep on making my case for realism.

We seek only one real monument, a monument with peace and progress for its base and justice for its pinnacle.

First, for the Asian leaders, who conceived and organized the bank and who are so ably represented here today by the Ambassadors from their countries.

This act is an economic Magna Carta for the diverse lands of Asia.

There are no bounds to the possibilities, if there are no limits to our dreams.

For the United States it is our first major commitment under our promise to expand economic and social development in Southeast Asia.

Today we have begun to redeem that pledge.

The Asian Development Bank is the first step of what I conceive to be a very long journey.

It is simply that there is no rest from the trials of freedom, there is no recalling what the pace of change has done to the map of this big world, there is no reducing our responsibilities while the challenges of progress will not permit…

And what is that case?

It is that we cannot turn from the place of shared needs and expect either peace or progress to follow us.

I believe that many of the world's nations have since learned the final futility of war.

So to those who ask what our present struggle in Vietnam really means, let me say: Our purpose is to demonstrate to the remaining advocates of violence that there is more human profit to be had from peace than there is from war.

How sad it is that such great sums must be spent for the bombs and the planes and the gunpowders of war.