Axis countries

Contemporary history for me begins with the start of WW 2 at my age four. United States relationships with the rest of the world are much like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. You never know what you will get. Our great enemies were the Axis countries of Germany, Japan and Italy while our friends were Russia and China. In Europe the US came with men, money and equipment to rebuild and this led to the new Europe we have today, a place of freedom and capitalism. In Japan the same thing occurred as the US installed a new government based on democracy. The US saved China from the Japanese onslaught and later built up their economy by creating businesses there and buying their products. Russia refused help from the US because they feared the power of the free market to destroy communism. It would take 50 years before communism would fall but the remnants remain to this day limiting the economic opportunities in today's Russia. Russia with a population of 147 million has a GDP of $1.5 trillion as opposed to California with a population of 40 million and a GDP of $3.4 trillion. During the war Germany and Japan were our enemies while Russia and China were our friends but today it is the reverse. Like Forrest said, who knows.