World War II by country warships and the German ship "Admiral Graf Spee" fought the Battle of the River Plate in the zone. This prompted a joint protest from several Latin American nations to both sides. ("Admiral Graf Spee" took refuge in Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, claiming sanctuary in a neutral port, but was later ordered out.) In early 1942, President Baldomir broke off diplomatic relations with the Axis Powers. On 15 February 1945, near the end of the war, Uruguay dropped its neutrality and joined the Allies. Uzbekistan was part of the Soviet Union during World War II. So see this article's section on the
Latin America during World War II assistance from the United States in exchange for military bases and participation in the defense of the Western Hemisphere. The United Kingdom and other European nations, including their colonies, logically received the majority of the aid, because the chaos of war was much closer to them. Latin America, however, received approximately $400 million in war materials, which was a small fraction compared of what was distributed to the European nations. Out of all of the Latin American nations, Brazil benefited the most from Lend-Lease during the war, mainly because of its geographical position at the northeastern corner of South America,