3 ms·

I thought US bases are there to keep Germans in check, not to defend them...

shrimp_emoji 3y ago
The bases are in West Germany: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Army_installations_in_Germany https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Army_ins... Are you saying they were trying to keep the West Germans in check after WW2? Nothing else going on in the area at the time (and arguably still), towards the east? Topkek
- Detrytus 3y ago
  Well, to be honest, both World Wars were Germany's fault, so it kind of made sense keeping them in check and making sure they won't try for the third time. Of course Soviet Union then quickly overshadowed them as a threat. Right now that NATO expanded to the East, Germany are not frontier country anymore, so the only way American troops make sense there is again, as occupying army.
  - manuel_w 3y ago
    I checked the wikipedia article on World War I [1] and fail to see how it can be attributed to Germany individually. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I > The first decade of the 20th century saw increasing diplomatic tension between the European great powers. This reached a breaking point on 28 June 1914, when a Bosnian Serb named Gavrilo Princip assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Austria-Hungary held Serbia responsible, and declared war on 28 July. Russia came to Serbia's defence, and by 4 August, defensive alliances had drawn in Germany, France, and Britain, with the Ottoman Empire joining the war in November.
    - VK538FY 3y ago
      And the madness of WWII was in no small way related to the oddly inequitable treaty of Versailles formulated to reflect French and British demands.
- constantcrying 3y ago
  >Are you saying they were trying to keep the West Germans in check after WW2? Absolutely, they also had to do various clean up tasks. Executions, Trials, political policing, etc. I don't think there is any kind of reasonable debate that stationing troops in Germany wasn't for the interest of the US in West Germany. Of course equally true is that as relationships between the former Allies deteriorated Germany became the frontline of that conflict and the focus shifted. The remilitarized German Armies on both sides became quite important as they both would be the first line of defense against any aggressor.

The bases are in West Germany: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Army_installations_in_Germany https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Army_ins... Are you saying they were trying to keep the West Germans in check after WW2? Nothing else going on in the area at the time (and arguably still), towards the east? Topkek

Detrytus 3y ago
Well, to be honest, both World Wars were Germany's fault, so it kind of made sense keeping them in check and making sure they won't try for the third time. Of course Soviet Union then quickly overshadowed them as a threat. Right now that NATO expanded to the East, Germany are not frontier country anymore, so the only way American troops make sense there is again, as occupying army.
- manuel_w 3y ago
  I checked the wikipedia article on World War I [1] and fail to see how it can be attributed to Germany individually. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I > The first decade of the 20th century saw increasing diplomatic tension between the European great powers. This reached a breaking point on 28 June 1914, when a Bosnian Serb named Gavrilo Princip assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. Austria-Hungary held Serbia responsible, and declared war on 28 July. Russia came to Serbia's defence, and by 4 August, defensive alliances had drawn in Germany, France, and Britain, with the Ottoman Empire joining the war in November.
  - VK538FY 3y ago
    And the madness of WWII was in no small way related to the oddly inequitable treaty of Versailles formulated to reflect French and British demands.
constantcrying 3y ago
>Are you saying they were trying to keep the West Germans in check after WW2? Absolutely, they also had to do various clean up tasks. Executions, Trials, political policing, etc. I don't think there is any kind of reasonable debate that stationing troops in Germany wasn't for the interest of the US in West Germany. Of course equally true is that as relationships between the former Allies deteriorated Germany became the frontline of that conflict and the focus shifted. The remilitarized German Armies on both sides became quite important as they both would be the first line of defense against any aggressor.