Do countries still owe the US money from ww2?
The case of debts arising from World War II is somewhat less complicated. At this time only four countries, discussed below, owe the U.S. government debts of any size arising from World War II programs to aid our allies. Other countries have paid their debts in full.
In 1952, the London Agreement on German External Debts assessed the final reparation figure at $3 billion. Germany has yet to pay off its debts for World War II. At this point, it's difficult to determine how much money they still owe after years of inflation and interest.
There never was any āWWII debtā owed by the United Kingdom to the United States. Post-war loans to the United Kingdom by the United States and Canada were paid off in 2006.
1933 - The U.S. debt reached $22 billion. 1939 - World War II was beginning in Europe. 1941 - The United States enters into World War II. 1945 - By the end of World War II the Government's debt had grown to more than $258 billion.
Does Russia owe the US money from World War II? Yes, the Soviet Union had owed some money. They started paid back in 1946 and paid for while, but Cold War creates lots of tensions between Allies, so payments were stopped.
With $1.1 trillion in Treasury holdings, Japan is the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt.
After World War II, a number of treaties were signed to make sure countries like Greece, Israel, and the Soviet Union were compensated for the destruction caused. Those who lost the war were therefore required to pay the victors. The only Allied country who won but paid compensation was the USA, to Japan.
After World War II both West Germany and East Germany were obliged to pay war reparations to the Allied governments, according to the Potsdam Conference.
Though it lasted fewer than four years, World War II was the most expensive war in United States history. Adjusted for inflation to today's dollars, the war cost over $4 trillion and in 1945, the war's last year, defense spending comprised about 40% of gross domestic product (GDP).
If there had been no lend-lease, then the UK would have lost the war. In 1941-2 we started to lose shipping to U boats faster than we could build them so we would eventually have brought to starvation without the US Liberty ships. Our tank production was lower than Germany's and the quality was appalling.
What if the US didn't join WW2?
If the U.S. had maintained formal neutrality, Operation Torch (the invasion of North Africa) might never have happened, and progress in the Med would have come much more slowly.
How much does the UK owe the US? Financially, nothing. All financial debts including interest from WW2 have been repaid. If it was not for Britain the USA would have found themselves at war with Europe, Japan, Italy, most Arab States and every powerful nation in the world.
Unlike after World War I, the US never really tried to pay down much of the debt it incurred during World War II. Still the debt shrank in significance as the US economy grew. It would take the debt-to-GDP ratio until 1962 just to get back to where the US was before the war.
The Second World War was certainly an economic success story, in that it coincided with the most rapid economic growth in U.S. history. Much of this growth came not in the recovery from the Depression, but in the post-1940 period, when the country was already more or less at full employment.
As the Cold War unfolded in the decade and a half after World War II, the United States experienced phenomenal economic growth. The war brought the return of prosperity, and in the postwar period the United States consolidated its position as the world's richest country.
Russia divested from all US bond instruments, the only debts the Federal government has, and still owes the US and other investors nearly 300 billion US Dollars. The national debt in Russia was forecast to increase between 2023 and 2028 by in total 16.1 billion U.S.
The U.S. government dedicated roughly 1 to 2% of national income to the program between 1948 and 1952, and nearly $3 billion USD went towards the reconstruction of Western Germany (Maier, 1991). Ludwig Erhard stated that all of the investment in the Bizone could be financed by the Marshall Plan (Kramer, 1991).
After World War II, according to the Potsdam conference held between July 17 and August 2, 1945, Germany was to pay the Allies US$23 billion mainly in machinery and manufacturing plants. Dismantling in the West stopped in 1950. Reparations to the Soviet Union stopped in 1953 (only paid by the GDR).
Of the $33T of debt, roughly 78% is owned by the public (70% US vs 30% International). The major US public owners include the FED ($6T, but they are no longer buyers), mutual funds, banks, states, pension funds and insurance companies.
The United States pays interest on approximately $850 billion in debt held by the People's Republic of China. China, however, is currently in default on its sovereign debt held by American bondholders.
What 3 countries hold most of the U.S. debt?
- Japan. Japan held $1.15 trillion in Treasury securities as of January 2024, beating out China as the largest foreign holder of U.S. debt. ...
- China. China gets a lot of attention for holding a big chunk of the U.S. government's debt. ...
- The United Kingdom. ...
- Luxembourg. ...
- Canada.
August 10, 2000: Consul-General of Japan in Hong Kong Itaru Umezu said: "In fact, Japan has clearly and repeatedly expressed its sincere remorse and apologies, and has dealt sincerely with reparation issues.
Due to increased efficiency and corporations' ability to keep up with changes in the international trading stage, Japan was able to provide goods that were in the most demand, increasing exports and thus real economic growth.
In November 1994, on the eve of 53rd anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan admitted it was "deeply regrettable" and "there can be no more excuse" for the fact that Japan failed to break off peace negotiations before it launched the attacks on the American navy base in Hawaii.
The Treaty of Versailles Punished Defeated Germany With These Provisions. Some disarmed the German military, while others stripped the defeated nation of territory, population and economic resources, and forced it to admit responsibility for the war and agree to pay reparations.
References
- https://www.pgpf.org/the-fiscal-and-economic-challenge/fiscal-and-economic-impact
- https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/leadership/managers
- https://www.history.com/news/treaty-of-versailles-provisions
- https://study.com/learn/lesson/german-war-reparations-wwi-wwii.html
- https://www.marketplace.org/2023/05/26/who-does-the-u-s-owe-31-4-trillion/
- https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/06fa597117ada0801cc2cdcca0788623-0340012021/original/Local-Currency-Financing-Product-Note.pdf
- https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/good-question-how-did-the-u-s-debt-get-so-high/
- https://www.clearfinances.net/countries-without-public-debt/
- https://money.usnews.com/investing/articles/de-dollarization-what-happens-if-the-dollar-loses-reserve-status
- https://www.fdiintelligence.com/content/data-trends/the-world-banks-top-10-biggest-debtors-82044
- https://wise.com/us/currency-converter/usd-to-cny-rate?amount=100
- https://www.glassdoor.com/Salary/The-World-Bank-President-Salaries-E41195_D_KO15,24.htm
- https://budgetmodel.wharton.upenn.edu/issues/2023/10/6/when-does-federal-debt-reach-unsustainable-levels
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_reparations
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/government/historical-debt-outstanding/
- https://www.quora.com/The-UK-owns-about-755-000-000-000-of-the-USA-debt-how-much-more-of-the-USA-debt-could-the-UK-own-and-what-impact-does-that-have-on-both-countries
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_war_apology_statements_issued_by_Japan
- https://www.quora.com/After-World-War-II-What-nations-owed-what-financially-to-the-United-States
- https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2012/07/26/getting_to_know_theworldbank
- https://www.quora.com/What-will-happen-if-the-US-dollar-crashes-Do-you-think-it-is-likely-to-happen
- https://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/second-world-war-economy-mark-wilson-destructive-creation-review/
- https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/07/debt-crisis-is-in-the-making-and-it-wont-end-well-for-the-world-economist-warns.html
- https://www.quora.com/What-would-happen-if-the-USA-and-other-countries-stopped-trading-with-China
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/dollarization-happening-countries-ditching-usd-123000519.html
- https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2023/5/31/infographic-how-does-us-debt-rank-compared-world
- https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/01/the-us-national-debt-is-rising-by-1-trillion-about-every-100-days.html
- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2024-01-06/bloomberg-new-economy-china-s-debt-mountain-is-even-bigger-than-feared
- https://www.bis.doc.gov/index.php/country-papers/2971-2021-statistical-analysis-of-u-s-trade-with-china/file
- https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/leadership/members
- https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2024/01/16/what-national-debt-means-for-you/72111112007/
- https://www.cbr.ru/eng/statistics/macro_itm/svs/ext-debt/
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/246420/major-foreign-holders-of-us-treasury-debt/
- https://www.fxstreet.com/analysis/china-is-dumping-us-treasuries-and-buying-gold-202404212302
- https://www.fidelityinternational.com/editorial/article/how-china-keeps-its-debt-in-order-e1feea-en5/
- https://usafacts.org/articles/which-countries-own-the-most-us-debt/
- https://1997-2001.state.gov/issues/economic/fs_000301_wardebt.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II_reparations
- https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/unitedstates
- https://www.quora.com/Does-Russia-currently-hold-any-debt-or-loans-from-the-United-States
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_and_the_World_Bank
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign-exchange_reserves_of_China
- https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/was-it-inevitable-what-if-us-never-entered-wwii-165564
- https://www.vedantu.com/commerce/debt-free-countries
- https://www.pgpf.org/top-10-reasons-why-the-national-debt-matters
- https://factsanddetails.com/asian/ca67/sub429/item2512.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russia_and_the_World_Bank
- https://www.statista.com/chart/19642/external-loan-debt-to-china-by-country/
- https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2024/03/28/the-fiscal-and-financial-risks-of-a-high-debt-slow-growth-world
- https://www.cepr.net/report/the-growing-debt-burdens-of-global-south-countries-standing-in-the-way-of-climate-and-development-goals/
- https://www.lemonde.fr/en/opinion/article/2024/03/21/will-china-really-become-the-world-s-leading-economic-power_6640185_23.html
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rothschild-family
- https://www.visualcapitalist.com/worlds-richest-countries-across-3-metrics/
- https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2023/09/13/global-debt-is-returning-to-its-rising-trend
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_position_of_the_United_States
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/miltonezrati/2023/01/16/chinas-overwhelming-debt-burden-points-to-still-deeper-problems/
- https://www.quora.com/How-much-does-America-owe-to-other-countries-and-how-much-do-those-countries-owe-America
- https://www.oxfordgoldgroup.com/articles/how-to-prepare-for-dollar-collapse/
- https://econreview.studentorg.berkeley.edu/the-japanese-economic-miracle/
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/happens-u-defaults-debt-143652479.html
- https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/countries-by-national-debt
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets-economy/090616/5-countries-own-most-us-debt.asp
- https://www.npr.org/2023/06/26/1184053690/chinese-owned-farmland-united-states
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/040115/reasons-why-china-buys-us-treasury-bonds.asp
- https://www.usbank.com/investing/financial-perspectives/market-news/chinas-economic-influence.html
- https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/12/what-is-global-debt-why-high/
- https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/americas-finance-guide/national-debt/
- https://www.wsj.com/world/china/whats-wrong-with-chinas-economy-in-eight-charts-efc2ea5f
- https://medium.com/@fatherOrestes/global-debt-who-we-owe-and-its-implications-873a50f95cda
- https://www.chinausfocus.com/finance-economy/the-future-of-the-chinese-yuan-a-global-currency
- https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/articles/the-top-10-economies-in-the-world
- https://www.worldbank.org/en/about/annual-report/our-organization
- https://business.inquirer.net/367942/ph-now-just-7th-biggest-wb-borrower-india-tops-list
- https://collins.house.gov/media/press-releases/collins-china-buying-us-farmland
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/top-20-countries-owe-us-175515001.html
- https://thehill.com/opinion/international/4075341-china-is-in-default-on-a-trillion-dollars-in-debt-to-us-bondholders-will-the-us-force-repayment/
- https://www.currencytransfer.com/blog/expert-analysis/will-the-us-dollar-collapse
- http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/CHINA-DEBT-GRAPHIC/0100315H2LG/
- https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2022/11/22/what-is-the-biggest-country-in-the-world/10158553002/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_debt_of_the_United_States
- https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1324&context=senior_theses
- https://www.schwab.com/learn/story/where-us-dollar-may-be-headed-2024
- https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/080615/china-owns-us-debt-how-much.asp
- https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/how-does-federal-government-spend-its-money
- https://www.itsuptous.org/blog/who-does-us-owe-money-to
- https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/who-going-buy-all-us-debt-rod-khleif-gdete
- https://www.quora.com/Why-does-Japans-national-debt-not-seem-as-bad-as-other-countries-despite-their-economy-appearing-worse
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_China
- https://www.treasurydirect.gov/kids/history/history_ww2.htm
- https://online.norwich.edu/online/about/resource-library/cost-us-wars-then-and-now
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_debt_of_China
- https://www.theguardian.com/notesandqueries/query/0,5753,-23432,00.html
- https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IF/IF11361
- https://www.let.rug.nl/usa/outlines/history-1994/postwar-america/the-postwar-economy-1945-1960.php
- https://www.cnbc.com/2015/03/18/who-still-owes-what-for-the-two-world-wars.html
- https://homework.study.com/explanation/what-would-happen-if-the-u-s-actually-paid-off-the-national-debt-where-would-the-banks-big-financial-institutions-and-government-foreign-and-domestic-put-their-cash.html
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Bank
- https://www.gao.gov/americas-fiscal-future/federal-debt
- https://www.quora.com/Is-UK-still-paying-back-2nd-world-war-loan-to-USA
- https://wise.com/us/currency-converter/usd-to-cny-rate?amount=20
- https://chinapower.csis.org/us-debt/
- https://www.visualcapitalist.com/which-countries-hold-the-most-us-debt/
- https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/11/the-long-story-of-us-debt-from-1790-to-2011-in-1-little-chart/265185/
- https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/us-national-debt-dilemma
- https://www.forbes.com/advisor/money-transfer/highest-currencies-in-the-world/
- https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0611/june-20-5-ways-the-u.s.-can-get-out-of-debt.aspx
- https://www.investopedia.com/top-10-asian-american-owned-banks-5079644