<P> In 1917 , with Russia experiencing political upheaval following widespread disillusionment there over the war , and with Britain and France low on credit , Germany appeared to have the upper hand in Europe , while the Ottoman Empire clung to its possessions in the Middle East . In the same year , Germany decided to resume unrestricted submarine warfare against any vessel approaching British waters ; this attempt to starve Britain into surrender was balanced against the knowledge that it would almost certainly bring the United States into the war . Germany also made a secret offer to help Mexico regain territories lost in the Mexican -- American War in an encoded telegram known as the Zimmermann Telegram , which was intercepted by British Intelligence . Publication of that communique outraged Americans just as German U-boats started sinking American merchant ships in the North Atlantic . Wilson then asked Congress for `` a war to end all wars '' that would `` make the world safe for democracy '' , and Congress voted to declare war on Germany on April 6 , 1917 . On December 7 , 1917 , the U.S. declared war on Austria - Hungary . U.S. troops began arriving on the Western Front in large numbers in 1918 . </P>
<P> In 1917 , with Russia experiencing political upheaval following widespread disillusionment there over the war , and with Britain and France low on credit , Germany appeared to have the upper hand in Europe , while the Ottoman Empire clung to its possessions in the Middle East . In the same year , Germany decided to resume unrestricted submarine warfare against any vessel approaching British waters ; this attempt to starve Britain into surrender was balanced against the knowledge that it would almost certainly bring the United States into the war . Germany also made a secret offer to help Mexico regain territories lost in the Mexican -- American War in an encoded telegram known as the Zimmermann Telegram , which was intercepted by British Intelligence . Publication of that communique outraged Americans just as German U-boats started sinking American merchant ships in the North Atlantic . Wilson then asked Congress for `` a war to end all wars '' that would `` make the world safe for democracy '' , and Congress voted to declare war on Germany on April 6 , 1917 . On December 7 , 1917 , the U.S. declared war on Austria - Hungary . U.S. troops began arriving on the Western Front in large numbers in 1918 . </P>
who did the us fight in the first world war
who did the us fight in the first world war
Germany Austria - Hungary
Germany Austria - Hungary