On June 12, 1987, President Ronald Reagan delivered the most forceful line of the Cold War in a speech in front of the Berlin Wall: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” Embedded in this challenge—and in Reagan’s belief that the Berlin Wall represented the broader struggle between totalitarianism and freedom—was a clear commitment that U.S. policy must ultimately work to ensure that liberty prevails over oppressive regimes. Reagan articulated that American leadership in this effort would take several forms. He celebrated economic successes like the Marshall Plan that enhance prosperity in the free world, argued that a robust U.S. military alongside strong and capable allies would strengthen America’s hand against Moscow, and kept freedom at the center of the ideological contest against the Soviet Union. Not only did Reagan outline a strategy that helped America win the Cold War, but he offered hope to those living under the Iron Curtain reflected in the fall of the Berlin Wall just two years later. Reagan’s blueprint offers valuable insights for the pillars of a strategy America should leverage against potent adversaries today. In this video, Michael Allen, Managing Director and Partner at Beacon Global Strategies, and Roger Zakheim, Washington Director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, discuss Reagan’s landmark speech and how it should guide U.S. strategy today.