"It was my firm conviction that the American Army should be preserved as an integral whole, and that only in this way could it make its maximum contribution to the allied cause. To distribute our divisions among the French and British armies would have destroyed their national identity and morale, and would have made it impossible to build a cohesive fighting force under American command. Furthermore, an independent American army was necessary if the United States was to exert a major influence in the final peace negotiations."
—General John J. Pershing, Commander of the American Expeditionary Forces, 1918
Which of the following best explains Pershing's insistence on maintaining the American Expeditionary Forces as an independent military force rather than integrating them into Allied units?
- To ensure the United States maintained political sovereignty and secured a decisive, independent voice in the postwar peace negotiationsAnswer
- BTo adhere to the terms of the Monroe Doctrine by preventing American forces from engaging in offensive actions on European soil
- CTo uphold a policy of absolute isolationism by refusing to cooperate with foreign military commanders and planners
- DTo prevent American soldiers from contracting communist ideological views from French and British troops