A National Archives Foundation educational resource using primary sources from the National Archives
Department of State
Division of Language Services
(Translation)
LS No. 14763
R-13/T-18
Russian
WN 3 93
VIA RCA
Moscow 1745
April 30, 1961
The President
The White House
Washington
Excellency:
Allow me to express to the people of the United States and to you personally gratitude for congratulations on the occasion of the unprecedented exploit of the Soviet people — the successful launching of the first human being into space.
I express the hope that the Soviet Union and the United States may work together on the matter of mastering the universe, considering the mastering of the universe as a part of the great task of creating peace without armaments and war.
N. Khrushchev
Moscow, The Kremlin
April 30, 1961
This primary source comes from the Collection JFK-3: Papers of John F. Kennedy: Presidential Papers: President's Office Files.
National Archives Identifier: 193799
Full Citation: Telegram, Khrushchev to Kennedy re: Yuri Gagarin April 30, 1961; 4/30/1961; Astronauts: Alan Shepard, May 1961: 1-16; Subject Files, January 20, 1961–November 22, 1963; Collection JFK-3: Papers of John F. Kennedy: Presidential Papers: President’s Office Files,; John F. Kennedy Library, Boston, MA. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/document/telegram-khrushchev-kennedy-gagarin/, April 27, 2026]
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