[ExTxMarine]

Post-WWII was classic nation building.

I think you are mistaking the reasoning behind the initial combat and then the subsequent dividing of the spoils of war.

A portion of the problems facing the world today (heck, ever since WWII) can be attributed to the multitude of mistakes made by ALL parties following WWII.

But, WWII was NOT fought for nation building purposes; it was specifically fought to THWART Germany's and Japan's attempts to EXPAND their national foot prints.

Those who won the war then made many mistakes, but the war itself was NOT one of those mistakes.

[Tublecane]

Point is nation building was the endgame. Does it matter that it wasn’t the plan from the get-go? Granted, it wasn’t. Churchill, FDR, etc. were shockingly shortsighted. They ended up with nation building, and therefore that is what the war was fought for.