Milestones: 1937–1945 - Office of the Historian
Milestones: 1937–1945
Lend-Lease and Military Aid to the Allies in the Early Years of World War                     II
During World War II, the United States began to provide significant military                     supplies and other assistance to the Allies in September 1940, even though the                     United States did not enter the war until December 1941. Much of this aid flowed                     to the United Kingdom and other nations already at war with Germany and Japan                     through an innovative program known as Lend-Lease.
FDR Signing the Lend-Lease Bill
When war broke out in Europe in September 1939, President Franklin D.                         Roosevelt declared that while the United States would remain                     neutral in law, he could “not ask that every American remain neutral in thought                     as well.” Roosevelt himself made significant efforts to help nations engaged in                     the struggle against Nazi Germany and wanted to extend a helping hand to those                     countries that lacked the supplies necessary to fight against the Germans. The                     United Kingdom, in particular, desperately needed help, as it was short of hard                     currency to pay for the military goods, food, and raw materials it needed from                     the United States.
Though President Roosevelt wanted to provide assistance to the British, both                     American law and public fears that the United States would be drawn into the                     conflict blocked his plans. The Neutrality Act of 1939 allowed belligerents to                     purchase war materiel from the United States, but only on a “cash and carry”                     basis. The Johnson Act of 1934 also prohibited the extension of credit to                     countries that had not repaid U.S. loans made to them during World War I—which                     included Great Britain. The American military opposed the diversion of military                     supplies to the United Kingdom. The Army’s Chief of Staff, General George C.                     Marshall, anticipated that Britain would surrender following the collapse of                     France, and thus American supplies sent to the British would fall into German                     hands. Marshall and others therefore argued that U.S. national security would be                     better served by reserving military supplies for the defense of the Western                     Hemisphere. American public opinion also limited Roosevelt’s options. Many                     Americans opposed involving the United States in another war. Even though                     American public opinion generally supported the British rather than the Germans,                     President Roosevelt had to develop an initiative that was consistent with the                     legal prohibition against the granting of credit, satisfactory to military                     leadership, and acceptable to an American public that generally resisted                     involving the United States in the European conflict.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill
On September 2, 1940, President Roosevelt signed a “Destroyers for Bases”                     agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, the United States gave the British                     more than 50 obsolete destroyers, in exchange for 99-year leases to territory in                     Newfoundland and the Caribbean, which would be used as U.S. air and naval bases.                     British Prime Minister Winston Churchill had originally requested that Roosevelt                     provide the destroyers as a gift, but the President knew that the American                     public and Congress would oppose such a deal. He therefore decided that a deal                     that gave the United States long-term access to British bases could be justified                     as essential to the security of the Western Hemisphere—thereby assuaging the                     concerns of the public and the U.S. military
In December 1940, Churchill warned Roosevelt that the British were no longer able                     to pay for supplies. On December 17, President Roosevelt proposed a new                     initiative that would be known as Lend-Lease. The United States would provide                     Great Britain with the supplies it needed to fight Germany, but would not insist                     upon being paid immediately
Instead, the United States would “lend” the supplies to the British, deferring                     payment. When payment eventually did take place, the emphasis would not be on                     payment in dollars. The tensions and instability engendered by inter-allied war                     debts in the 1920s and 1930s had demonstrated that it was unreasonable to expect                     that virtually bankrupt European nations would be able to pay for every item                     they had purchased from the United States. Instead, payment would primarily take                     the form of a “consideration” granted by Britain to the United States. After                     many months of negotiation, the United States and Britain agreed, in Article VII                     of the Lend-Lease agreement they signed, that this consideration would primarily                     consist of joint action directed towards the creation of a liberalized                     international economic order in the postwar world.
Lend-Lease Memorial
The United Kingdom was not the only nation to strike such a deal with the United                     States. Over the course of the war, the United States contracted Lend-Lease                     agreements with more than 30 countries, dispensing some $50 billion in                     assistance. Although British Prime Minister Winston                         Churchill later referred to the initiative as “the most unsordid                     act” one nation had ever done for another, Roosevelt’s primary motivation was                     not altruism or disinterested generosity. Rather, Lend-Lease was designed to                     serve America’s interest in defeating Nazi Germany without entering the war                     until the American military and public was prepared to fight. At a time when the                     majority of Americans opposed direct participation in the war, Lend-Lease                     represented a vital U.S. contribution to the fight against Nazi Germany.                     Moreover, the joint action called for under Article VII of the Lend-Lease                     agreements signed by the United States and the recipient nations laid the                     foundation for the creation of a new international economic order in the postwar                     world.