Europe was laying in rubble in the 40s. The only reason the US got out of WW2 as the global power was because it did not suffer any attacks on its mainland. Also it had reliable access to resources throughout.
Also it is not true that Western or Eastern European countries didn’t prepare for war. The British, French and also West-Germans built a sizeable army during the cold war. The same for Eastern European countries like Poland. Germany sold thousands of tanks to Poland after the Sowjet Union fell.
The German reduction in military was not done to pay for increased social welfare. It was done to reduce taxes to the wealthy.
Europe was laying in rubble in the 40s. The only reason the US got out of WW2 as the global power was because it did not suffer any attacks on its mainland. Also it had reliable access to resources throughout.
Also it is not true that Western or Eastern European countries didn’t prepare for war. The British, French and also West-Germans built a sizeable army during the cold war. The same for Eastern European countries like Poland. Germany sold thousands of tanks to Poland after the Sowjet Union fell.
The German reduction in military was not done to pay for increased social welfare. It was done to reduce taxes to the wealthy.