Mexican-American War [1846-1848]

Of all the armed forces of the West, the US military has the shortest and, I dare say, the strangest history. Usually, the armed forces go down in history through battle, and the strangeness of the American military begins with the fact that in the battle, which dates back to the beginning of the North American military, this army did not fight at all, because it did not exist yet.

The militia system of the army, which the United States preferred after its inception, did not allow the creation of a unified rear service. When war broke out with the Seminoles in Florida in 1818, engineering units had to be decommissioned to supply field units because civilian contractors failed to fulfill contracts. This led War Minister Calhoun to put pressure on Congress to release funds for intendant administration ...

At the end of the 19th century, the United States found itself in a special position. The country had no external enemy, after the defeat of Mexico, other American states recognized it as a hegemon, and the long sea borders were protected by the British navy. Due to mineral wealth, which also included oil on the list (fields in California and Texas), the US government had no ambition to gain control of foreign resources. This led to the fact that there was no strategy, no concept of defense, no plans against potential adversaries, that is, everything that was a matter of course in Europe ...

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the United States resembled a sleepily contented boa constrictor. The success of the US Navy in the Spanish-American War opened the bag to Congress, and T. Roosevelt had no problem raising funds for the construction of new heavy units of the fleet. Suddenly, everyone seemed to understand the importance of the ocean fleet in the sense of the Mahan Doctrine - it was evident that the British fleet did not intend to cover the new US overseas economic interests of the Philippines, Cuba and Puerto Rico, although it de facto still ensured US security.

An armistice in November 1918 put the United States in a role with which it had no experience. Day by day, they became the world's leading power, and President Wilson, with his 14 points, took the lead in organizing post-war Europe ...

Until World War II ended, President Roosevelt anxiously avoided any negotiations on postwar borders or state institutions. In December 1941, when he was badly oppressed, Stalin wanted to act and would allow the return of eastern Poland and the evacuation of the Baltic countries, but with the Red Army's advance to the west, his willingness faded to zero.

If one can think of a specific date in which the United States became the first superpower of the modern world and gained strategic control over it, it is December 8, 1991, when the USSR was formally abolished - a global adversary with which it maintained for more than 40 years power balance ...