Was the United States truly isolationist during the inter-war years?

        The United States, while refusing to become involved in foreign disputes, was, however, actively involved in preventing them from beginning.  For example in 1921-2 after WW1 the USA helped set up the Washington Naval Agreement.  This was to prevent Britain, Japan, France and Italy from increasing their navies and having an arms race like the one before 1914.  They also had a ten-year ban from producing any new battleships.  Also, the US secretary of state, Frank Kellog, helped the development of the Kellog-Briand pact in 1928.  It made all the major powers try to avoid waging war with each other.  The USA also took part in the Geneva Peace Conference of 1932 and the World Economic Conference of 1933.  Also, throughout the whole time after WW1 the USA did not object to immigrants landing on it’s shores.  All these things strongly suggest that the United States were never isolationist in the first place.

        The Americans also gave economic aid to countries which were in crisis of falling apart or to countries who they thought would be a treat.  At the end of WW1 Germany was left in ruins, but the USA wanted to build up it’s economy so it could play it’s full role in Europe.  The USA felt that to keep peace in Europe everyone had to be equal.  Similar loans were given to Asia, Australia and Canada.  Money was also given to Russia and South American countries who were a threat. This was called the ‘good neighbour’ policy.  

        America did not completely turn it’s back on the world in the inter-war years.  However, by refusing to join the League of Nations it fatally weakened that organisation.  In the 1930’s it done nothing to stop the invasion of Manchuria by Japan or to stop Hitler making aggressive policies and growing dangerous sized armed forces.  

        Depending on how you see the situation, America was not really an isolationist country due to the things it got involved in.  It was closely   involved in stopping disputes, trading goods, giving out loans and having allies.  Maybe the only time when it was seriously isolationist was when it didn’t stop the invasion of Manchuria or by stopping the growth of Nazi Germany. In the end the USA, the world’s most powerful country, did nothing to prevent Nazi aggression and the coming of World War Two.  This was the terrible result of isolationism.