The reason US is so influential is its the most powerful world's economy and the issuer of world's reserve currency. Having big military is a consequence of tha

The reason US is so influential is its the most powerful world's economy and the issuer of world's reserve currency. Having big military is a consequence of that - if you can afford to have big military, you get it. And, also, if you have a big economy, you may need some ways to defend it from all kinds of threats - before they become so serious that they can hurt your economy.