ABSTRACT
Depending on the course of the conflict, the military can become deeply involved in postwar efforts to engage in political stabilization, economic development, counterinsurgency, and deterrence of third parties. A relevant example of a postwar reconstruction effort was the US military's struggle to manage political transition in post-invasion Iraq. The toll of this effort amply illustrates the importance of presidential decisions following the invasion and overthrow of the Ba'athist government. Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan were made into democratic states that became stalwart postwar allies of the United States. For some George W. Bush administration officials, the task of reforming Japan and Germany seemed more difficult than the task of reforming Afghanistan or Iraq. John Dower titled his Pulitzer Prize-winning assessment of postwar Japan Embracing Defeat, capturing the essence of Japan's postwar perspective in two words.
