I have been asked a question by a friend and I know that some of you guys will be able to answer it off the top of your heads.
The question is: In which instances has America become militarily involved in another country purely for the benefit of that country and without any perceivable immediate or long term benefits to America?
This will of course exclude allied countries. There may be examples in which the insurrection, if not quelled, might have spilled over to a nearby or adjacent ally of the USA.
Have there been instances in which America offered to intervene, but was not welcomed?
It is my understanding that America and its allies went to war in Korea and Vietnam for the purpose of trying to arrest the spread of communism, which could be perceived as a threat to the whole Western world.
Well you saved half of Korea and lost Vietnam. An interesting side effect of the Korean war is that Christianity is now the predominant religion in South Korea (or so my Korean friends tell me)