Question

what are allies how they are helpful

Answer 1

In other words, is there a difference in principle between, say, President Clinton's "humanitarian intervention" in Bosnia and President Bush's "regime change" in Iraq? A classic Realist would argue (and some did) that there is no meaningful difference and no good reason to intervene militarily in either case. But for those of a different mind, it's a disturbing question. At least one prominent liberal advocate of using force in Bosnia suffered a crisis of conscience after finding himself opposed to the war in Iraq. He dealt with the contradiction by abandoning his earlier stance and dismissing the whole concept of "humanitarian intervention" as a ruse for neo-colonialism.