U.S.–British Staff Conference (ABC

The U.S.–British Staff Conference was a series of secret meetings between military leaders from the United States and United Kingdom. These talks also included Canada. Their main goal was to plan how the three countries would work together if the U.S. joined World War II. The conference happened in Washington, D.C. from January 29 to March 27, 1941. It ended with a report called "ABC-1", which was quietly approved by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt a few days later.

Planning for War: The ABC-1 Agreements

The United States agreed to these secret talks with the United Kingdom and Canada in 1940. However, they waited until after the 1940 United States presidential election to begin. This was because President Franklin D. Roosevelt had promised during his campaign that the U.S. would not get directly involved in World War II. After Roosevelt won the election by a large margin against Wendell Willkie, it was decided the talks would start soon after his third inauguration in January 1941.

The ABC-1 report set out the main military ideas, resources, and plans for a joint strategy among the Allied nations. The U.S. based its ideas on a plan by Harold Rainsford Stark called the Plan Dog memo. This plan suggested defeating Nazi Germany quickly. This idea became known as the "Europe first" strategy. This meant that if the U.S. entered the war, its main focus would be on defeating Germany.

The British had a slightly different idea at first. They suggested a strategy like the ancient Chinese general Sun Tzu, which meant attacking the enemy's weaker points or sides, like in North Africa or the Middle East. The U.S., following a style like the French general Jomini, preferred a more direct, powerful attack against the main German army, known as the Wehrmacht.

The plan also assumed that if the U.S. went to war with Nazi Germany, it would likely also go to war with Fascist Italy and Imperial Japan.

Here are the main agreements they reached:

The United States' main interest was protecting the Western Hemisphere (North and South America).
The safety of the British Commonwealth (countries connected to Britain) had to be kept safe, including its position in the Far East.
Keeping sea routes open and safe between the Allied Powers was very important.

Their plans for attacking the enemy included:

Quickly defeating Fascist Italy, which was an Axis partner.
Supporting countries that were neutral but resisting the Axis, and also helping underground resistance groups.
Carrying out continuous air attacks to weaken the Axis military.
Building up forces for a future attack against Germany and capturing areas to launch that attack from.
The Atlantic Ocean and Europe were considered the "decisive theater" (the most important area) for U.S. military efforts. However, the "great importance" of the Middle East and Africa was also noted.

Finally, if Japan joined the war, the military strategy in the Far East would be mainly defensive. Even though the ABC-1 agreement was not a formal military alliance, it showed that the United States was getting ready to join the war on the side of the Allied powers. It also meant that the U.S. would do everything to keep the British Commonwealth safe. The U.S. military also started changing its existing war plans (like the RAINBOW plans) to include working closely with other nations.

U.S.–British Staff Conference (ABC–1) facts for kids

Planning for War: The ABC-1 Agreements

See also