Episode 2: The United States' Ambivalent Relationship with Foreign Alliances

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The great question is, how can we win America's peace?

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Our nation's leadership, while striving for peace, has adopted a course that

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makes real peace unlikely.

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The United Nations was founded in the aftermath of World War II to protect future

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generations from the scourge of war.

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We will defend our NATO allies, and that means every ally.

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In this alliance, there are no junior partners or senior partners.

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They're just allies. What we have gotten out of NATO is nothing except to protect

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Europe from the Soviet Union and now Russia.

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I mean, we've helped them for so many years. We've never gotten anything except

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we pay for NATO. We paid for many years until I came along.

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We paid for, in my opinion, 100% of NATO. Has the United States always been

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so committed to foreign alliances such as NATO?

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If not, then when and why did that change? And can the U.S.

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Really be neutral on the world stage?

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America's ambivalent relationship with foreign alliances on this episode of History You Can Use.

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Welcome to History You Can Use, I'm Brian Thomas. It's no secret that the United

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States is one of the most, if not the most, powerful nation in the world,

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particularly when discussing the military or the economy.

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Understandably, other nations looking for friends and assistance often look to the United States.

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By the turn of the 21st century, the U.S. was not shy about engaging in alliances

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with foreign countries.

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However, it wasn't always this way.

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For much of its history, the United States took pride in a fiercely isolationist policy.

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What changed? And why did it change?

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Our search for answers begins in a small seaside village in Virginia known as Yorktown.

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The year was 1781, and this is the site of the decisive battle of the American Revolution.

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A British army of over 8,000 men are hunkered down in Yorktown,

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surrounded by the Continental Army, with about 10,000 men under the command

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of General George Washington.

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The bombardment is relentless, and Continental soldiers slowly and methodically

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overtake outlying British positions and inch their way ever closer to the edge of the village.

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The entrapped men running low on ammunition and supplies have only one hope, the British Navy.

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Ah, yes, the British Navy. We're going to have a lot to say about them in this

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episode, so let me give you just a quick introduction.

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The British Navy was the most formidable oceanic force the world had ever seen.

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It dominated the seas with unmatched firepower and sheer size.

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Its formidable strength protected the British home islands from invasion and

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allowed Britain to administer its global empire.

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With that said, back to Yorktown. The United Colonies had no navy to speak of,

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and it seemed only a matter of

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time before the trapped British army was relieved by their massive ships.

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But Washington's Continental Army had one rather significant ace up its sleeve,

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their military alliance with the Kingdom of France.

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When the colonies rebelled against the British Empire, France looked on with

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eager anticipation, hoping for an opportunity to strike a blow against their arch nemesis.

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When the Continental Army emerged victorious from the Battles of Saratoga,

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it was both shocking and encouraging.

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Maybe these colonies might just have a chance after all.

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The following year, the French formally entered a military and economic alliance

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with the fledgling Colonial Federation and declared war on Britain.

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It was a godsend for the colonies, as the French king provided much-needed money,

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weapons, troops, and naval power.

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Twice during the war, the French sent a naval squadron to the American colonies

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looking for a fight with the British.

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The first mission didn't accomplish much in North American waters,

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but the second, well, it changed the course of human history.

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Back in Yorktown, the British Army kept a sharp eye focused out into the Chesapeake

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Bay, anxiously awaiting the first sign of a British ship sailing to their rescue.

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And then, they appeared.

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Sails on the horizon, ships sailing through the bay.

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But as they came closer, the lookouts must have felt a pit in their stomachs.

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The ships weren't flying the British Union Jack, but rather the French Fleur de Lis.

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The French fleet dropped anchor and waited.

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They knew the British ships were coming, and eight days later,

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the British fleet was spotted approaching the mouth of the bay.

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The French weighed anchor and sailed out to meet their rival.

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With their 24 ships, the French held the upper hand against the British, who only brought 19.

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In what became known as the Battle of the Virginia Capes or the Battle of the

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Chesapeake, the fleets lined up their ships and commenced firing.

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Both sides inflicted severe damage on the other, but the British got the worse of it.

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As the fighting ended for the day, the French sailed back into the Chesapeake

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while the British were left to assess their damage.

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The British commanders decided they had no choice but to head for open ocean and return to New York.

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The French fleet stayed at Yorktown and bombarded British positions from the sea.

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The entrapped soldiers held out for several weeks before finally surrendering.

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If you've ever seen the Mel Gibson movie, The Patriot, This scene is rather

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accurately depicted in the final moments of the film.

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We won't talk about the historical accuracy of the rest of the movie,

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but they did get the Siege of Yorktown right.

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Losing an entire army at last convinced the British government that it was not

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in their best interest to continue the war, and peace negotiations soon began.

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American independence from a European king was secured in no small part because

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of an alliance with another European king.

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Could the colonists have prevailed without the assistance of France and their navy?

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Who can say, but it definitely would have lasted much longer.

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Regardless, the U.S. was free and had made its first friend on the global stage.

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France looked forward to many

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years of a mutually beneficial relationship with the new United States.

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But not all friendships are meant to last.

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To formally end the American Revolution, peace negotiators met in Paris.

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Although the alliance between France and the colonies stated the two would negotiate

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together with the British, the American ambassadors saw an opening to secure

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independence and did not wait for their French colleagues.

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The new United States entered into a separate peace, breaking the agreement with their ally.

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It was an excellent treaty for the new nation, securing land from the Atlantic

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Ocean to the Mississippi River, requiring the removal of all British troops

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and guaranteeing fishing rights in Canadian waters.

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Although the French were not pleased with the rogue U.S. treaty,

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they soon secured their own deal with the British, and it quickly seemed to

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be water under the bridge, and certainly no reason to end the transatlantic friendship.

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But all was not well in the new country.

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The economy was in tatters. The government established by the Articles of Confederation

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was practically helpless, lacking the ability to tax or regulate trade,

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or even to enforce its own laws.

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Individual states entered into their own trade deals with foreign nations,

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weakening the new country's collective ability to negotiate terms or to promote economic development.

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The solution came in 1788 with the passing of the Constitution.

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George Washington became president in 1789 and quickly appointed a cabinet of

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the nation's most brilliant minds to fix the country's problems.

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Alexander Hamilton, as Secretary of the Treasury, was tasked with building the

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economy, and Thomas Jefferson, as Secretary of State, tended to foreign relations.

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Less than three months after Washington took office, Europe was rocked by one

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of the greatest turning points in history, the French Revolution.

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America's closest friend was in turmoil.

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The deposing of the French king created the first major crisis for Washington

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and his administration.

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Practically all of America originally rejoiced at the outbreak of the French Revolution,

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with Washington saying, The revolution which has been effected in France is

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of so wonderful a nature that the mind can hardly recognize the fact that nation

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will be the most powerful and happy in Europe.

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Historian John Fairling summarized, quote, many linked the fate of the American

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Revolution, which they believed was yet to be determined, to the survival of the French Revolution.

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The two great Republican revolutions, they said, face the same enemies,

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aristocrats, monarchists, and Great Britain, end quote.

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But the revolution soon spiraled. The French decided to dispose of their ousted

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king, guillotine style.

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And France was fighting most other European powers, read that as monarchies,

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who were threatened by the removal and execution of the king.

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France was also winning on the battlefield, which threatened British dominance

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over the continent and drew the British into the war.

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Jefferson tried to convince Washington to support the new government in France,

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viewing it as an extension of the American revolutionary ideals.

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The nation has been awaked by our revolution.

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They feel their strength, they are enlightened, their lights are spreading,

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and they will not retrograde.

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Also, Jefferson argued that the prior alliance with France still applied and

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asked what moral scruples the U.S.

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Could claim if it failed to stand with the one nation that was so instrumental

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in winning its own independence.

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Hamilton, however, advised Washington to stay out of the European war.

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The British Empire was the most important trading partner for the young United

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States and a vital part of Hamilton's plan to build the economy,

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which was experiencing exceptional growth by that point.

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Also, he was concerned about the mass executions in France, known as the Reign

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of Terror, arguing that such violence in no way descended from the ideals of

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the American Revolution.

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To press his point, he suggested that the prior alliance was made with the now-deceased

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French king, and, therefore, the U.S. owed no allegiance to the new government.

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Besides, the U.S. had no military to speak of and could do nothing more than

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impose economic sanctions, which, again, were bad for the economy.

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The nation was torn, as was Washington, who assembled his cabinet to seek their advice.

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Hamilton and Jefferson continued to press their perspectives,

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and the choice was framed as one of supporting the nation's founding ideals

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versus fostering the country's financial well-being.

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I think our contemporary political strategist James Carville said it best.

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It's the economy, stupid.

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Washington saw it the same way.

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In 1793, he issued the Proclamation of Neutrality, which read,

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in part, The duty and interest of the United States require that they should,

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with sincerity and good faith,

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adopt and pursue a conduct friendly and impartial toward the belligerent powers.

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France was outraged and felt betrayed.

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They viewed the Americans as allies who defaulted on their treaty obligations.

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Jefferson dutifully endorsed the proclamation in public and privately fumed.

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He consorted with James Madison to attack the proclamation in the press,

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under pseudonyms, of course, to hide their identities.

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And he resigned from Washington's administration at the end of the year.

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One of the criticisms they leveled was that the Constitution did not grant the

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president the power to issue such declarations, and thus, the policy was unconstitutional.

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The Senate made that attack a moot point the following year,

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when they passed the Proclamation of Neutrality as law, forbidding American

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citizens from aiding any side in the European conflict.

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A few years later, Washington penned his farewell address, his final advice

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to the nation as he entered his long-overdue retirement.

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On the topic of foreign relations, he did not mince words.

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The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is in extending

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our commercial relations.

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To have with them as little political connection as possible,

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it is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world.

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In other words, it's in the best interest of the United States to extend economic

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relationships to other nations, But political and military alliances were to be avoided.

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Entanglements in foreign wars and politics were just bad for business and didn't

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serve American interests.

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He did approve of, quote, temporary alliances for extraordinary emergencies.

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But the die was cast. The U.S. was to strive for neutrality.

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The U.S.

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U.S. neutrality is often termed isolationism. But that word is a bit of a misnomer, as the U.S.

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Certainly did not enter a self-induced isolation. On the contrary,

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it actively sought to extend its economic influence by building trading relationships

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with multiple European powers.

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But Europe remained engaged in the wars of the French Revolution,

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including the Napoleonic Wars, for 23 years.

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Not the most hospitable business environment.

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Plus, neutrality was a bit of a charade. Shortly after Washington issued the

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Proclamation of Neutrality, U.S.

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Ambassador John Jay negotiated a treaty with Britain that primarily focused

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on trade and commerce, including allowing the British Navy to seize American

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goods destined for France, if they paid for them.

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It was a vital step in building the U.S. economy, but also served as a backhanded

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slap at France. The French Navy began attacking U.S.

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Merchant ships heading to the British Isles, and Paris continued to complain that the U.S.

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Had not sufficiently repaid its debts incurred during the American Revolution.

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To smooth things over, the U.S. sent a delegation to France.

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But when the French foreign minister demanded bribes to open negotiations,

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the so-called XYZ affair, the American ambassadors were offended and left.

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In response, Congress authorized the use of force in American waters against

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French shipping, but stopped short of declaring war.

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This naval conflict is remembered to history as the Quasi-War,

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and primarily resulted in the small American Navy harassing French merchant

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ships sailing for the Caribbean.

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American merchant ships were vulnerable to the powerful French Navy when they

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reached European waters.

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To solve that problem, American ships join convoys with British ships sailing

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under the protection of the British Navy.

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So it's a rather bizarre idea of neutrality.

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The Quasi-War lasted a little over two years and ended when a new French government

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took control and agreed to American, quote-unquote, neutrality,

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which really meant they acceded to the British-American preferred trade partnership.

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At last, American international relationships were stabilized.

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The country stayed out of the ongoing European wars and secured commerce and

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trade with their vital partner, Great Britain.

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Surely, years of peace and prosperity lay just ahead.

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And if you're picking up my sarcasm, you know the wheels are about to fall off.

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As the Napoleonic Wars continued in Europe, France and Britain both looked for

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an upper hand in trade relationships.

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Napoleon barred mainland European countries from trading with Britain,

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and in response, the British Navy blockaded French ports, requiring all ships

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to go through a British port first.

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In other words, merchant ships weren't allowed travel to France unless they paid a tax to Britain.

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Although Britain was the primary trading partner, the U.S.

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Did continue commerce with France and viewed the British blockade as a violation

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of American neutrality.

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Given that the British Navy defeated the French Navy a few years before at the

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Battle of Trafalgar, there was nothing stopping Britain from exacting their

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fees, and the American economy was feeling the effects.

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What's more, it takes a lot of men to operate those hundreds of British warships,

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and sailors were in short supply.

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So, when the British boarded American ships, they identified any men who seemed

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likely to be British, arrested them, and forced them to serve in the British Navy.

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A practice known as impressment.

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Pressure on President James Madison was intense, and the U.S.

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Declared war on Britain.

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The War of 1812 was strange. The U.S.

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Couldn't possibly challenge Britain on the seas, and its invasion of Canada was a disaster.

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Britain's first attempt to invade the U.S. ended in shambles.

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Sure, they captured and burned Washington, and Francis Scott Key wrote the Star-Spangled

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Banner while watching the defense of Fort McHenry.

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But neither side really knew what direction the war was taking,

00:18:18.720 --> 00:18:20.800
or even what the ultimate goals were.

00:18:21.660 --> 00:18:26.000
The conflict lasted a few years and ended after Britain lifted their blockade

00:18:26.000 --> 00:18:28.080
and agreed to end impressment.

00:18:28.460 --> 00:18:32.100
The U.S. claimed victory, but no one really believed the U.S.

00:18:32.200 --> 00:18:33.580
Had actually won anything.

00:18:34.060 --> 00:18:38.300
You see, Napoleon had been defeated, and there was just no reason for Britain

00:18:38.300 --> 00:18:39.660
to continue those policies.

00:18:40.620 --> 00:18:43.860
I know, all of that was a lot, so allow me to sum up.

00:18:44.300 --> 00:18:50.240
The United States was 35 years old, And in that time, it had made war against Britain,

00:18:50.780 --> 00:18:54.560
allied with France, broke the alliance with France by negotiating a separate

00:18:54.560 --> 00:18:58.340
peace, broke the alliance with France again by not coming to their aid,

00:18:58.820 --> 00:19:00.300
signed trade agreements with Britain,

00:19:00.880 --> 00:19:04.620
fought an undeclared sea war against France, and then declared war on Britain

00:19:04.620 --> 00:19:08.060
because it prevented trade with France. What can I say?

00:19:08.580 --> 00:19:15.340
Diplomacy is hard, but true neutrality or isolationism seemed downright impossible.

00:19:24.622 --> 00:19:29.682
The prolonged period of war so occupied the countries of Europe that their overseas

00:19:29.682 --> 00:19:31.102
empires were crumbling.

00:19:31.482 --> 00:19:37.282
A slave rebellion resulted in the people of Haiti achieving independence from France in 1804.

00:19:37.662 --> 00:19:42.462
During the next 20 years, the Spanish Empire gave way to the independent nations

00:19:42.462 --> 00:19:46.742
of Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile, and others,

00:19:47.002 --> 00:19:49.422
while Brazil broke free from Portugal.

00:19:49.822 --> 00:19:54.502
The United States was in a unique position to wield its considerable economic

00:19:54.502 --> 00:19:57.362
power over the entire Western Hemisphere.

00:19:57.502 --> 00:20:02.422
With fighting in Europe finally concluded, there was a prevailing concern that

00:20:02.422 --> 00:20:07.622
imperialistic countries may try to reassert themselves within their former colonies.

00:20:07.822 --> 00:20:13.242
Enter President James Monroe. It is impossible that the Allied powers should

00:20:13.242 --> 00:20:19.002
extend their political system to any portion of either continent without endangering

00:20:19.002 --> 00:20:20.562
our peace and happiness,

00:20:20.922 --> 00:20:23.382
it is equally impossible, therefore,

00:20:24.102 --> 00:20:29.942
that we should behold such interposition in any form with indifference. Allow me to translate.

00:20:30.442 --> 00:20:36.462
President Monroe, in his 1823 way, is telling the European powers to stay out

00:20:36.462 --> 00:20:43.002
of North and South America and, if they try to recolonize, the United States would be ready to fight.

00:20:44.053 --> 00:20:48.133
Tough words from a president whose country has no real way of enforcing this.

00:20:48.633 --> 00:20:53.273
Remember, the U.S. Navy is nothing to brag about, and the army isn't much better.

00:20:53.653 --> 00:21:00.213
But this Monroe Doctrine was enforced nonetheless because it was also a good deal for the British.

00:21:00.753 --> 00:21:04.993
They didn't want to see mainland European countries become more powerful by

00:21:04.993 --> 00:21:06.513
reestablishing their empires.

00:21:06.733 --> 00:21:10.493
And it really wasn't worth the effort for the British to colonize these places.

00:21:11.173 --> 00:21:16.053
So, the United States, you go right ahead and view this as your sphere of influence.

00:21:16.273 --> 00:21:20.293
And to make sure nobody interferes, Britain will throw their weight around.

00:21:20.513 --> 00:21:21.893
And you know what that means.

00:21:22.133 --> 00:21:25.673
The British Navy will enforce the Monroe Doctrine.

00:21:26.213 --> 00:21:32.513
So again, this isn't looking like true isolationism, but it's not exactly an alliance either.

00:21:33.193 --> 00:21:38.333
Let's call it a strategic military partnership for economic reasons.

00:21:39.173 --> 00:21:44.933
Yeah, that should work. For most of the next 100 years, the American policy

00:21:44.933 --> 00:21:47.253
of neutrality wasn't really tested.

00:21:47.813 --> 00:21:50.793
European nations continued to fight their wars now and then,

00:21:50.993 --> 00:21:54.213
and occasionally involved themselves briefly in the Americas.

00:21:54.713 --> 00:21:59.093
The U.S. occupied itself with westward expansion, fought a lopsided war with

00:21:59.093 --> 00:22:03.413
Mexico trying to achieve its manifest destiny, sectionalism tore the country

00:22:03.413 --> 00:22:05.653
apart, and a civil war scarred the nation.

00:22:06.513 --> 00:22:10.193
What diplomatic challenges there were primarily focused on U.S.

00:22:10.333 --> 00:22:15.313
Interests in the Caribbean, particularly repeated efforts to separate Cuba from

00:22:15.313 --> 00:22:20.793
their imperial Spanish masters, which finally happened in 1898 with the conclusion

00:22:20.793 --> 00:22:22.153
of the Spanish-American War.

00:22:22.573 --> 00:22:27.733
But through all of that, the U.S. never really entered into formal military

00:22:27.733 --> 00:22:31.513
alliances and just continued those, what did we call them?

00:22:32.193 --> 00:22:36.233
Oh, yeah. Strategic Military Partnerships for Economic Reasons.

00:22:37.157 --> 00:22:43.437
By the turn of the 20th century, the U.S. had emerged as a major economic and industrial power.

00:22:43.777 --> 00:22:47.257
It had developed its own overseas empire by acquiring Hawaii,

00:22:47.637 --> 00:22:51.017
the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Guam, and other territories.

00:22:51.357 --> 00:22:56.977
And for the most part, the country managed to avoid being entangled in European politics.

00:22:57.777 --> 00:23:01.057
Yeah, neutrality was working out great for the United States.

00:23:01.677 --> 00:23:04.337
Sounds like it's about time for the wheels to fall off again.

00:23:19.288 --> 00:23:25.668
In 1914, Europe again found itself engaged in a great war that spanned the entire continent.

00:23:26.168 --> 00:23:30.168
Almost immediately, Britain and France asked the U.S. for assistance.

00:23:30.668 --> 00:23:34.268
President Woodrow Wilson was certainly sympathetic to the Allies' cause,

00:23:34.408 --> 00:23:37.068
but public opinion was fiercely opposed to war.

00:23:37.668 --> 00:23:42.368
America's bedrock foreign policy of neutrality prevented active engagement.

00:23:43.189 --> 00:23:47.609
Ah, but when there's a will, there's a way. Officially, the U.S.

00:23:47.909 --> 00:23:51.989
Declared it would continue trading with all belligerent nations on equal terms.

00:23:52.409 --> 00:23:55.709
American trade with France and Britain increased exponentially,

00:23:56.109 --> 00:24:00.249
including selling military supplies and making loans to fund the war effort.

00:24:00.709 --> 00:24:03.009
As for the Allies' opponent, Germany?

00:24:03.489 --> 00:24:07.569
Well, remember, Britain has that remarkable navy.

00:24:08.029 --> 00:24:12.369
It effectively blockaded shipping traffic to Germany, causing U.S.

00:24:12.489 --> 00:24:14.669
Trade with that nation to practically cease.

00:24:15.089 --> 00:24:20.369
Only, unlike a century before, when a similar British blockade led to the War

00:24:20.369 --> 00:24:25.329
of 1812, this time there was no significant protest from the American government.

00:24:25.869 --> 00:24:30.569
The U.S. economy depended heavily on trade with Britain, and the increase in

00:24:30.569 --> 00:24:34.529
commerce more than compensated for the lost revenue from German trade.

00:24:34.889 --> 00:24:37.929
Again, a strange version of neutrality.

00:24:38.309 --> 00:24:43.349
A little less than a year into the war, a German submarine sank a British passenger

00:24:43.349 --> 00:24:50.229
liner, the RMS Lusitania, killing nearly 1,200 people, 128 of whom were American.

00:24:50.529 --> 00:24:52.809
The American public was outraged.

00:24:53.369 --> 00:24:56.849
Frustrations toward Germany increased over the coming years, but still.

00:24:57.129 --> 00:25:02.569
President Wilson successfully ran for re-election in 1916 on the promise of

00:25:02.569 --> 00:25:04.689
keeping the United States out of the war.

00:25:05.369 --> 00:25:11.409
Americans valued their neutrality. But in 1917, the war came home.

00:25:11.789 --> 00:25:17.089
First, the Germans declared unrestricted submarine warfare, threatening to sink

00:25:17.089 --> 00:25:19.429
any ship that ventured into British waters.

00:25:19.889 --> 00:25:22.269
The U.S. protested, as such a

00:25:22.269 --> 00:25:26.029
move challenged their trade with Britain and endangered the U.S. economy.

00:25:26.715 --> 00:25:31.535
Second, British intelligence intercepted a transmission from Germany to their

00:25:31.535 --> 00:25:36.555
ambassador in Mexico, in which the Germans asked the Mexicans to enter the war

00:25:36.555 --> 00:25:41.255
on their side if the United States entered the war on the side of Britain and France.

00:25:41.535 --> 00:25:45.595
It pledged to help the Mexicans recover land they lost during an earlier war

00:25:45.595 --> 00:25:49.855
with the U.S., including the states of Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico.

00:25:50.095 --> 00:25:53.475
The British cheerfully passed this information on to the Americans,

00:25:53.495 --> 00:25:56.055
and the fallout resulted in the U.S.

00:25:56.175 --> 00:26:03.195
Declaring war on Germany. Over there, over there, say the word,

00:26:03.455 --> 00:26:10.135
say the word, over there, that the games are coming, they U.S.

00:26:10.315 --> 00:26:15.495
Entry into World War I infused the Allied effort with fresh resources and soldiers.

00:26:15.755 --> 00:26:21.595
As historian John Keegan noted, Quote, nowhere among Germany's remaining resources

00:26:21.595 --> 00:26:26.535
could sufficient force be found to counter the millions America could bring

00:26:26.535 --> 00:26:28.435
across the Atlantic, end quote.

00:26:29.245 --> 00:26:32.665
The Great War left immeasurable devastation across the continent,

00:26:32.905 --> 00:26:36.945
including the deaths of an estimated 20 million soldiers and civilians.

00:26:37.605 --> 00:26:42.385
President Wilson had a 14-point plan to prevent the recurrence of such a tragedy,

00:26:42.445 --> 00:26:45.245
but for our purposes we'll focus on the last point,

00:26:45.425 --> 00:26:49.905
the development of a global Congress where diplomats from the world's nations

00:26:49.905 --> 00:26:52.965
could come together and resolve their differences peacefully.

00:26:53.385 --> 00:26:57.445
When agreements could not be reached, the Assembly could take steps to support

00:26:57.445 --> 00:26:59.425
each other and enforce the global

00:26:59.425 --> 00:27:03.325
consensus, which might then prevent an aggressor from starting a war.

00:27:03.705 --> 00:27:09.865
It was an interesting idea, and 42 countries signed on as founding members of the League of Nations.

00:27:10.285 --> 00:27:16.545
The League grew and eventually included 63 nations, including Germany and the Soviet Union.

00:27:16.705 --> 00:27:20.785
The one global power absent, however, was the United States.

00:27:21.285 --> 00:27:25.465
The treaty ending World War I included the charter for the League of Nations,

00:27:25.685 --> 00:27:28.825
meaning it had to be ratified by the U.S. Senate.

00:27:29.485 --> 00:27:33.405
In the minds of many Americans, the alliance with Britain and France was one

00:27:33.405 --> 00:27:37.745
of those temporary alliances that George Washington approved of in cases of

00:27:37.745 --> 00:27:39.545
extraordinary emergencies.

00:27:40.085 --> 00:27:44.005
The emergency was now over, and thus, so was the alliance.

00:27:44.585 --> 00:27:48.045
Public opinion was opposed to joining the international body,

00:27:48.205 --> 00:27:52.565
as it was viewed as entanglement in foreign politics, and the country wanted

00:27:52.565 --> 00:27:54.765
to return to its isolationist ways.

00:27:55.305 --> 00:27:58.485
Membership in the League of Nations never passed the U.S. Senate,

00:27:58.665 --> 00:28:02.245
and America returned to an official policy of neutrality.

00:28:03.192 --> 00:28:06.592
The League of Nations went on with its mission and settled some minor disputes,

00:28:06.812 --> 00:28:10.592
but without one of the world's leading industrial and economic powers,

00:28:10.872 --> 00:28:13.932
the authority of the League of Nations was limited.

00:28:14.452 --> 00:28:20.892
As one unfortunate example, in 1935, fascist Italy invaded Ethiopia,

00:28:21.572 --> 00:28:24.692
and the emperor of the African country appealed to the League for help.

00:28:24.952 --> 00:28:30.912
In response, an oil embargo was declared against Italy, not being a member of

00:28:30.912 --> 00:28:32.372
the League and relying on its

00:28:32.372 --> 00:28:36.732
policy of neutrality, the United States continued shipping oil to Italy.

00:28:37.132 --> 00:28:40.532
The League of Nations was helpless to enforce its sanctions,

00:28:40.812 --> 00:28:46.592
sending a clear message to Adolf Hitler that the League of Nations was nothing to fear.

00:28:54.758 --> 00:28:59.098
Many in the United States regretted the country's previous involvement in World

00:28:59.098 --> 00:29:05.498
War I, resulting in three separate bills enacted in the 1930s that prohibited the U.S.

00:29:05.598 --> 00:29:10.618
From selling war material to warring nations, acts designed to guarantee American

00:29:10.618 --> 00:29:12.878
neutrality in future conflicts.

00:29:13.098 --> 00:29:18.018
However, after Germany invaded Poland in 1939, the U.S.

00:29:18.318 --> 00:29:22.118
Congress quickly passed a new Neutrality Act that allowed the sale of weapons

00:29:22.118 --> 00:29:27.138
to warring nations, provided the purchasing nation paid cash and transported

00:29:27.138 --> 00:29:28.258
the material themselves.

00:29:29.098 --> 00:29:33.638
Technically, this cash-and-carry deal was open to all nations,

00:29:33.918 --> 00:29:35.418
including Nazi Germany.

00:29:35.638 --> 00:29:37.898
By now, you know what happened.

00:29:38.218 --> 00:29:43.318
The British Navy ensured that Germany and Italy would not be purchasing weapons.

00:29:44.058 --> 00:29:49.258
The act was clearly designed to aid Britain and France while continuing the veil of neutrality.

00:29:49.798 --> 00:29:54.898
After Hitler's army steamrolled France in 1940, President Franklin Roosevelt

00:29:54.898 --> 00:29:58.098
recognized Britain's desperate position and sought to help.

00:29:58.738 --> 00:30:03.298
Faced with overwhelming public opposition to the war, he convinced the Congress

00:30:03.298 --> 00:30:08.818
to make the United States quote-unquote the arsenal of democracy and to approve

00:30:08.818 --> 00:30:11.558
the Lend-Lease Act, which allowed the U.S.

00:30:11.598 --> 00:30:15.558
To supply Britain with weapons under the assumption that Britain would pay what

00:30:15.558 --> 00:30:18.698
they could and return what remained at the end of the war.

00:30:19.278 --> 00:30:23.538
U.S. factories roared to life, making rifles, tanks, planes,

00:30:23.738 --> 00:30:28.778
bombs, and other weapons to ensure Britain had what it needed to fight the Nazis.

00:30:29.338 --> 00:30:33.598
But within a year, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and the U.S.

00:30:34.138 --> 00:30:35.758
Formally entered World War II.

00:30:36.789 --> 00:30:40.249
The two world wars taught the United States some hard lessons.

00:30:40.749 --> 00:30:45.889
Primary among them was that if you want to be an economic power and enjoy the

00:30:45.889 --> 00:30:50.969
benefits of global trade, then you will be pulled into major military conflicts,

00:30:50.969 --> 00:30:52.389
whether you like it or not.

00:30:52.749 --> 00:30:57.749
So it's to your significant economic and military advantage to prevent those

00:30:57.749 --> 00:31:00.089
wars from ever happening in the first place.

00:31:00.269 --> 00:31:04.309
To do that, isolationism cannot be your policy.

00:31:05.089 --> 00:31:09.609
Also, World War II drastically reshaped the geopolitical environment.

00:31:09.949 --> 00:31:14.789
Britain's global empire was falling apart, and the U.S. Navy overtook the British

00:31:14.789 --> 00:31:17.589
Navy as the largest and most powerful in the world.

00:31:18.009 --> 00:31:22.169
The Communist Soviet Union had established puppet governments throughout Eastern

00:31:22.169 --> 00:31:26.449
Europe, and their stated mission was to spread communism worldwide.

00:31:27.069 --> 00:31:32.929
The fear of a powerful and spreading totalitarian and communist nation forced

00:31:32.929 --> 00:31:35.089
the U.S. to confront an obvious truth.

00:31:35.409 --> 00:31:40.129
It was the only possible counterpoint to the Soviet Union, and it needed to

00:31:40.129 --> 00:31:43.309
take on the role of protector of Western liberal democracy.

00:31:43.709 --> 00:31:49.009
President Harry Truman, if you please. I believe that it must be the policy

00:31:49.009 --> 00:31:54.389
of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation

00:31:54.389 --> 00:31:58.169
by armed minorities or by outside pressures.

00:31:58.169 --> 00:32:04.149
I believe that we must assist free peoples to work out their own destinies in their own way.

00:32:04.309 --> 00:32:08.209
The free peoples he was speaking of were the people of Greece and Turkey,

00:32:08.389 --> 00:32:12.609
and the subjugators were communists infiltrating their governments,

00:32:12.789 --> 00:32:14.369
supported by the Soviet Union.

00:32:14.749 --> 00:32:18.309
The president laid out what became known as the Truman Doctrine,

00:32:18.489 --> 00:32:22.229
the promise that the United States would support those in the world fighting

00:32:22.229 --> 00:32:27.709
against the spread of communism, or, alternatively, for the preservation of freedom.

00:32:28.561 --> 00:32:35.401
In one address to Congress, President Truman upended over 150 years of U.S. foreign policy.

00:32:35.741 --> 00:32:40.201
The United States, in its new role as the defender of the free world,

00:32:40.441 --> 00:32:44.241
would actively involve itself in the affairs of foreign nations.

00:32:44.981 --> 00:32:49.041
Of course, this isn't exactly the political climate in which a country wants

00:32:49.041 --> 00:32:50.861
to find itself without friends.

00:32:51.581 --> 00:32:56.741
Shortly after the end of the Second World War, the same Senate that refused to allow the U.S.

00:32:56.861 --> 00:33:01.361
Entry into the League of Nations ratified the country joining the new United

00:33:01.361 --> 00:33:04.361
Nations by a vote of 65 to 7.

00:33:05.001 --> 00:33:08.281
After declaration of the Truman Doctrine, the U.S.

00:33:08.401 --> 00:33:13.021
Took the lead in constructing a military alliance designed to contain the Soviet Union.

00:33:13.301 --> 00:33:15.041
Again, the U.S.

00:33:15.341 --> 00:33:19.601
Senate overwhelmingly endorsed the country's membership in the new North Atlantic

00:33:19.601 --> 00:33:21.961
Treaty Organization, or NATO.

00:33:22.281 --> 00:33:28.781
For the first time in history, the United States entered into a military alliance during peacetime.

00:33:29.661 --> 00:33:33.221
In the coming years, the U.S. signed alliances with non-European countries as

00:33:33.221 --> 00:33:37.141
well, including Australia, South Korea, Japan, and others.

00:33:37.561 --> 00:33:44.141
By 1960, a country that once treasured its isolationist ways was the most allied

00:33:44.141 --> 00:33:48.041
country in the world, all in the service of promoting peace,

00:33:48.281 --> 00:33:50.541
economic prosperity, and freedom.

00:33:51.508 --> 00:33:55.688
The Truman Doctrine provided the basis for U.S. involvement in the wars in Korea

00:33:55.688 --> 00:34:01.488
and Vietnam, as well as other military actions, all aimed at stemming the tide of communism.

00:34:02.008 --> 00:34:05.868
When the Cold War ended with the fall of the Soviet Union and their communist

00:34:05.868 --> 00:34:08.228
allies in Eastern Europe, the U.S.

00:34:08.388 --> 00:34:10.468
Was left as the only global superpower.

00:34:10.988 --> 00:34:16.168
With communism no longer an omnipresent threat, what was to become of NATO and

00:34:16.168 --> 00:34:19.828
the other American alliances, it's difficult to walk away from friends.

00:34:20.048 --> 00:34:22.728
And certainly, other threats may emerge.

00:34:23.148 --> 00:34:26.988
Instead of focusing solely on defending against the communist threat.

00:34:27.688 --> 00:34:33.788
NATO and the other alliances transition to a broader goal of promoting the security of member nations.

00:34:34.168 --> 00:34:38.268
Of course, that word security is open to interpretation.

00:34:38.868 --> 00:34:42.868
One of NATO's first military actions in the post-Soviet era,

00:34:43.188 --> 00:34:46.948
involved airstrikes following the breakup of the former Yugoslavia.

00:34:47.428 --> 00:34:52.208
Serbian military attacks targeted civilian areas of Bosnia-Herzegovina,

00:34:52.448 --> 00:34:54.768
including the capital, Sarajevo.

00:34:55.433 --> 00:35:00.333
I'll let President Bill Clinton explain the rationale. Let me be clear about our objective.

00:35:00.573 --> 00:35:04.493
We must help the warring parties in Bosnia to reach a negotiated settlement.

00:35:04.773 --> 00:35:08.713
To do that, we must make the Serbs pay a higher price for continued violence

00:35:08.713 --> 00:35:12.793
so it will be in their own interest more clearly to return to the negotiating table.

00:35:13.073 --> 00:35:17.253
That is, after all, why we pushed for NATO's efforts to enforce a no-fly zone

00:35:17.253 --> 00:35:20.993
and to provide close air support for U.N. forces who come under attack.

00:35:21.273 --> 00:35:24.453
NATO's mission now took on a humanitarian aspect.

00:35:25.273 --> 00:35:30.893
In Bosnia and later Kosovo, the goal was to prevent genocide and the targeting of civilians.

00:35:31.273 --> 00:35:35.953
A similar justification was used to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya following

00:35:35.953 --> 00:35:37.433
the Arab Spring uprisings.

00:35:37.673 --> 00:35:42.273
When pirates off the coast of Somalia caused a significant disruption to global

00:35:42.273 --> 00:35:45.733
trade, NATO took the lead in anti-piracy efforts.

00:35:46.053 --> 00:35:51.593
It seemed the mission of NATO and American military operations expanded well

00:35:51.593 --> 00:35:53.493
beyond protecting allies.

00:35:54.293 --> 00:35:59.473
Nonetheless, the alliance did continue to provide for the mutual defense of its member nations.

00:35:59.993 --> 00:36:03.533
Turkey received support to deter aggression from Iraq and Syria,

00:36:03.773 --> 00:36:06.933
and after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001,

00:36:07.393 --> 00:36:12.873
the United States famously became the only nation to ever invoke Article 5 of

00:36:12.873 --> 00:36:17.513
the NATO treaty, requiring the other member nations to come to its aid and join

00:36:17.513 --> 00:36:19.073
in the invasion of Afghanistan.

00:36:20.154 --> 00:36:23.774
More recently, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022,

00:36:24.694 --> 00:36:28.754
NATO, including the United States, strengthened defenses in Poland,

00:36:29.014 --> 00:36:33.454
Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, and other member countries in Eastern Europe.

00:36:34.074 --> 00:36:39.034
So, has the United States always been so committed to alliances with foreign nations?

00:36:39.674 --> 00:36:45.514
Simply put, no. For most of its history, the United States refused to join military

00:36:45.514 --> 00:36:49.714
alliances with other countries and actively sought to avoid entanglements in

00:36:49.714 --> 00:36:52.054
foreign wars, especially in Europe.

00:36:52.334 --> 00:36:57.854
But the primary motivation for this neutrality, or isolationism, was economic.

00:36:57.954 --> 00:37:03.074
And the nation clearly took sides in conflicts depending on what was in its economic interests.

00:37:03.374 --> 00:37:07.774
As the power and influence of the United States grew and trade developed in

00:37:07.774 --> 00:37:13.154
an ever-increasing global environment, foreign wars increasingly threatened the U.S.

00:37:13.234 --> 00:37:17.574
Economy. It wasn't until after World War II that the United States took on the

00:37:17.574 --> 00:37:20.654
expanded role of defending democracy and freedom.

00:37:20.934 --> 00:37:25.694
And these justifications led to several American military interventions and

00:37:25.694 --> 00:37:29.834
forms the current basis for providing military and financial assistance to countries

00:37:29.834 --> 00:37:31.474
such as Ukraine and Israel.

00:37:32.352 --> 00:37:36.372
Of course, friendly relations with foreign countries, such as those sharing

00:37:36.372 --> 00:37:41.372
the ideals of democracy and freedom, are often a precursor to economic cooperation,

00:37:42.112 --> 00:37:44.252
so these aims are not mutually exclusive.

00:37:44.792 --> 00:37:49.832
Still, there are those who long for the U.S. to return to its prior isolationist

00:37:49.832 --> 00:37:56.192
ways and view military alliances as surrendering American sovereignty and being financially wasteful.

00:37:56.392 --> 00:38:01.372
They argue that the contemporary American economy is strong enough to withstand

00:38:01.372 --> 00:38:06.112
minor wars in other parts of the world, and this significant economic power,

00:38:06.292 --> 00:38:08.892
combined with the threat of American military might,

00:38:09.112 --> 00:38:13.352
is sufficient to encourage peace without the need for formal alliances.

00:38:13.692 --> 00:38:18.072
This debate effectively hinges on one's view of the U.S.'s role in the world.

00:38:18.292 --> 00:38:22.312
Should the United States continue to take an active role in promoting democracy

00:38:22.312 --> 00:38:23.852
and freedom around the globe,

00:38:23.972 --> 00:38:28.772
which might promote economic development, but also entail active engagement

00:38:28.772 --> 00:38:33.312
in the affairs of foreign nations and the funding of bodies such as the UN and NATO?

00:38:33.752 --> 00:38:39.652
Or should the United States detach itself from allies and refocus on neutrality,

00:38:39.992 --> 00:38:45.132
which might allow the country to avoid military operations abroad and reduce expenditures?

00:38:45.472 --> 00:38:50.572
But in that case, totalitarian regimes may multiply, friendly nations may be

00:38:50.572 --> 00:38:55.232
left alone to fend for themselves, and all of that could be bad for the American economy.

00:38:56.352 --> 00:39:00.572
There's no easy answer to that question, but now you know why American engagement

00:39:00.572 --> 00:39:05.572
in foreign alliances is so controversial, and that's history you can use.

00:39:19.496 --> 00:39:22.036
History You Can Use is produced and hosted by me, Brian Thomas,

00:39:22.156 --> 00:39:23.596
with the assistance of various historians.

00:39:23.856 --> 00:39:26.916
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00:39:26.916 --> 00:39:30.936
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