# Top 5 U.S allies? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 10, 2009, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890 "2009-08-10T00:26:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/41 "2009-08-11T01:33:25Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > Cuba. A real good ally. You do know Guantanamo is occupied territory, right? ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/42 "2009-08-11T02:24:57Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > You do know Guantanamo is occupied territory, right? It’s actually leased to the US government. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/43 "2009-08-11T02:40:20Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > It’s actually leased to the US government. … essentially as a term of the Treaty of Paris (1898), which ended the Spanish-American War. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/44 "2009-08-11T02:40:39Z")
1. Britain 2. Canada 3. Australia The worldwide Anglo-Alliance, which I would put above other organizations in terms of cooperation. 1. Japan 2. Depends and varies. ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/45 "2009-08-11T02:41:48Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > … essentially as a term of the Treaty of Paris (1898), which ended the Spanish-American War. your point being… ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/46 "2009-08-11T02:53:18Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > your point being… That it’s occupied territory. The lease is a legal nicety. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/47 "2009-08-11T02:57:24Z")
Going by the OP’s criteria, Japan is certainly in the top 5. 1. It’s home to the 2nd largest number of permanently stationed US troops. 2. It’s home to the 7th Fleet (if these naval personnel are included, I believe Japan overtakes Germany as the largest overseas location). 3. The US position in Okinawa is very important in terms of geostrategic value. 4. Japan’s defense policy is integrated with and centered around the US to an extraordinary degree. 5. The Japanese government has repeatedly been willing to take actions in support of the US even when faced by strong popular protest. 6. The Japanese public has consistently had a positive view of the US, even during the Bush years. 7. Japan is the US ally most likely to back the US when it comes to the US-China rivalry. Obviously constitutional restrictions limit its usefulness as a direct supporter of the US, but it’s immensely valuable as an indirect one. ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/48 "2009-08-11T02:58:28Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > That it’s occupied territory. The lease is a legal nicety. Says you. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/49 "2009-08-11T03:00:57Z")
Canada is totally dependent on the USA. The UK has a deep history so I’d put those as well. I see Japan as well, because of the dependency issue. Mexico has to be in there too because of the border and the friendly relations. I see France and Israel as friendly but putting their own interests far ahead of the USA. Not that these are unfriendly nations by any means. I would also removed NZ as it is also a very friendly nation but as shown with it’s anti-nuclear effort it would be independent minded if so inclined. That would leave in my book for the 5th: Aussie, South Korea, or Germany. Of course one might want to put the former UN Trust Territories like Palau and Micronesia, now independent nations as very strong US allies. Their location in the Pacific and the use of their land makes them far more valuable to us then numbers suggest ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/50 "2009-08-11T03:05:38Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > Says you. And Cuba. ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/51 "2009-08-11T03:06:36Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > And Cuba. Ok, that’s two. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/52 "2009-08-11T03:48:38Z")
I’d say: 1. United Kingdom 2. Everybody else Just kidding. 1. United Kingdom 2. Canada 3. Australia 4. Germany 5. South Korea Japan, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan would be close behind them on the list. Some of the former Warsaw Pact countries really like us, too, and with Obama in office a lot more African countries are feelin’ the love. We still catch Israel and France spying on us now and then, and the closeness of our ties seems to depend a lot on who holds executive power in each country, so I’m not entirely comfortable putting them on our “bestest allies evah” list. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/53 "2009-08-11T03:50:17Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > Ok, that’s two. I’d say their vote counts for a little extra. Seeing as it’s their island and all. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/54 "2009-08-11T03:58:08Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > 1. United Kingdom > 2. Canada > 3. Australia > 4. Germany > 5. South Korea Why Korea? > [@](#): > > Japan, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan would be close behind them on the list. But, as mentioned earlier, we aren’t actually allied with NZ. ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/55 "2009-08-11T04:41:45Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > I’d say their vote counts for a little extra. Seeing as it’s their island and all. Okay. Three. Come back when you have a point. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/56 "2009-08-11T04:48:06Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > Okay. Three. > > Come back when you have a point. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2009, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/57 "2009-08-11T04:51:50Z")
It is interesting to see how Canada moves around on these lists. I particularly liked this comment: > [@Markxxx](#): > > Canada is totally dependent on the USA. As far as allies go, Canada has done fairly well at supporting the US when it is in the right, and letting it go its own way when it going off on a tangent. Since Confederation (so we can leave out burning Washington) Canada was in Second Boer War (as allies of the British), First World War, Second World War, Korean War, Gulf I and Afghanistan. Canada took a pass on Viet Nam and Iraq, which, at this short distance, look like pretty solid calls. One Canuck friend of mine once described the relationship with the States as being similar to having a good buddy who drinks too much. Sometime he gets in fights for good reasons, and you back him up; sometimes he picks fights for no reason and you try to talk him out of it. I might also suggest that the long term picture is being underrepresented in this thread. France has been an ally of the US since before the US existed, and has a damn good track record. Australia or Japan have never sent a Lafayette or Lejeune to help save the country. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/58 "2009-08-12T05:18:54Z")
> [@cckerberos](#): > > Why Korea? > > But, as mentioned earlier, we aren’t actually allied with NZ. South Korea has always been very closely aligned with the U.S. They permit us to have a very large military presence in their country (with good reason, IMHO, given their heavily-armed, menacing and wacky neighbor to the north). South Korea even sent troops to fight on our side in the Vietnam War. New Zealand is a good friend, an English-speaking Westminster-style parliamentary democracy. For a good cause, NZ is on our side more often than not. Not in the top five, as I said, but right up there. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/59 "2009-08-12T05:28:43Z")
How about The Netherlands (often called the 51’nd state of the USA), Belgium and Luxemburg, banded together in the [Benelux](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benelux)? With a population of 27 million, which is about half of the population of all of France? ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2009, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890/60 "2009-08-12T14:03:42Z")
It is? Some Canadians (and Americans) call Canada the 51st State as well. I’m starting to think it’s a result of mental laziness. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/top-5-u-s-allies/505890.md?page=4)