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Lyalko S

The World Wars

  • These conditions began to change by the early 1900s. The rise of Germany and Japan challenged the established order in Europe and the Far East. During World War I (1914-1918) the traditional policy of isolationism in the United States was discontinued when the country entered the conflict in 1917. Following the war, many Americans became committed to world law and collective security, but the Congress of the United States passed strict neutrality legislation between 1935 and 1937. After the outbreak of World War II (1939-1945) isolationists lost ground to those who favored sending aid to the Allied powers. The debate ended when the United States entered the war following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.