How did the United States provide assistance to the Allies against the Axis powers despite maintaining neutrality?

Question

I would like to know someone's opinion on this, as I am very confused.

Answer 1

The United States as we know was neutral until 1941, after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. The United States provided assistance in many ways to the Allied Powers before 1941. Government passed the Lend-Lease Act (1941) which supplied weapons, ships, airplanes, and other war materials to the Allied powers to keep their fronts up. They used the Cash-and-Carry Policy that allowed Allied nations to purchase U.S. goods from overseas. They also provided loans and financial aid to the war, and supported the allied through diplomacy and intelligence. Long story short, they remained "neutral" because they were not actively fighting in the war against the Axis, only supplied goods to increase the powers of the Allies without actually fighting in battle. I hope this helps!

Answer 2

The US was key to providing supplies, weapons, and munitions to the Allied powers long before we got involved in the war. I grew up in Detroit, we learn a lot about how the car companies were turned over to make military Jeeps, or weapons. Right down the street from where I lived is a company called TACOM, they still to this day make tanks(9/11 was scary, ya'll). About a hr away is Yankee Air Base, and Willow Run, that was an air field during the war and they made P-51 aircrafts(my aunt was a Rosie there). Now for the everyday person, simple rationing was a way to assist in the war effort. Families would ration the amount of metal, meat, dairy, and cloth they would have on a regular basis, in a similar way we use food stamps today. The excess would be sent overseas to our Allies. It was even common for kids to walk the neighborhoods with their little wagons, collecting tin cans which would be sent over seas, doing their little part for the war effort. Lastly, and often forgotten, were victory gardens. These were community gardens that allowed them to grow fresh fruit, vegetables, and herbs for the community, and reducing pressure on the government, thus aiding in the war effort.

Answer 3

The US was using the powers granted under the lend lease act (1941) which allowed the US to supply allied powers (mainly Great Britain and the USSR) with key supplies, including weapons, rations, vehicles, etc. In exchange for this they received long term leases for military bases on forgiven soil, which caused the beginning of the global superpower we see today, and also stipulated that the countries receiving aid would pay the US back with either intact items (unused ammo, etc.) or with similar goods, services, or form of payment

Answer 4

One example can be seen in FDR's Lend-Lease program, which allowed the US to provide much-needed supplies (food, military goods, etc) to Britain without immediate payment, as Britain was unable to pay for supplies due to the cost of the war effort. Here's a link to some information on this program from the US Office of the Historian: https://history.state.gov/milestones/1937-1945/lend-lease.

Answer 5

The United States found itself in an advantageous position at the beginning of the second world war. The nation was still reeling from the effects of the great depression and was still in desperate need of financial assistance.

They certainly had no interest in directly joining the fight over in Europe but, they were very much interested in the financial opportunity the war provided them. They would get to enjoy the benefits of neutrality while making industrial contributions to their European allies. By that I mean that they became an ally supplier in the first years of the war. They sent over weaponry, military vehicles, and medical supplies.

Naturally this chain of buying and selling supplies was kept secret (as much as reasonably possible) from the axis powers as it could have been seen as a direct interference in the war and would likely have caused axis powers such as Germany to openly declare war on the United States, effectively ending their neutral status. Does this mean that the axis powers had no idea about this trade? No, various accounts and physical reports would suggest that the axis had suspected the United States of this long before the US broke their neutrality.

However, the axis already had their hands full with managing the European war front as well as maintaining the loose relationship with Russia and were therefore less than eager to invite the US to join the fight by any means. As far as the axis powers were concerned the US was an issue to be dealt with at a later date and thus the US was able to maintain neutrality while providing military aide to the allies.

Answer 6

The United States helped with scientific knowledge, intellectual expertise, and medical supplies.