Question: Following the war where Memoirs of a Geisha is set, a conflict in which Germany was divided into two countries developed, between the U.S. and what nation?

germany has a network of 227 diplomatic missions abroad and maintains relations with more than 190 countries. as of 2011, germany is the largest contributor to the budget of the european union (providing 20%) and the third largest contributor to the un (providing 8%). germany is a member of nato, the oecd, the g8, the g20, the world bank and the imf. it has played an influential role in the european union since its inception and has maintained a strong alliance with france and all neighbouring countries since 1990. germany promotes the creation of a more unified european political, economic and security apparatus.the development policy of germany is an independent area of foreign policy. it is formulated by the federal ministry for economic cooperation and development and carried out by the implementing organisations. the german government sees development policy as a joint responsibility of the international community. it was the world's third biggest aid donor in 2009 after the united states and france.in 1999, chancellor gerhard schröder's government defined a new basis for german foreign policy by taking part in the nato decisions surrounding the kosovo war and by sending german troops into combat for the first time since 1945. the governments of germany and the united states are close political allies. cultural ties and economic interests have crafted a bond between the two countries resulting in atlanticism. <SEP> the united states joined world war ii in december 1941 after the japanese attack on pearl harbor. on the european front, u.s. army troops formed a significant portion of the forces that captured north africa and sicily, and later fought in italy. on d-day, june 6, 1944, and in the subsequent liberation of europe and defeat of nazi germany, millions of u.s. army troops played a central role. in the pacific war, u.s. army soldiers participated alongside the united states marine corps in capturing the pacific islands from japanese control. following the axis surrenders in may (germany) and august (japan) of 1945, army troops were deployed to japan and germany to occupy the two defeated nations. two years after world war ii, the army air forces separated from the army to become the united states air force in september 1947 after decades of attempting to separate. also, in 1948, the army was desegregated by order of president harry s. truman. <SEP> Full diplomatic relations between the two countries were established late due to mutual hostility. The relations between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922 -- 1991) succeeded the previous relations from 1776 to 1917 and predate today's relations that began in 1992. During World War II, the two countries were briefly allies. At the end of the war, the first signs of post-war mistrust and hostility began to appear between the two countries, escalating into the Cold War; a period of tense hostile relations, with periods of détente. <SEP> The Cold War divided Germany between the Allies in the west and Soviets in the east. Germans had little voice in government until 1949 when two states emerged: <SEP> Memoirs of a Geisha is a historical novel by American author Arthur Golden, published in 1997. The novel, told in first person perspective, tells the story of a fictional geisha working in Kyoto, Japan, before and after World War II.