[h=3]British Empire[/h] Public opinion in Britain and the Commonwealth was delighted with the principles of the meetings but disappointed that the U.S. was not entering the war. Churchill admitted that he had hoped the U.S. would finally decide to commit itself.
The acknowledgment that all peoples had a right to self-determination gave hope to independence leaders in
British colonies (e.g.,
India).[SUP]
[7][/SUP]
In a September 1941 speech, Churchill stated that the Charter was only meant to apply to states under German occupation, and certainly not to the peoples who formed part of the
British Colonial Empire.[SUP]
[8][/SUP]
Churchill rejected its universal applicability when it came to the self-determination of subject nations such as
British India.
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in 1942 wrote to President Roosevelt: "I venture to think that the Allied declaration that the Allies are fighting to make the world safe for the freedom of the individual and for democracy sounds hollow so long as India and for that matter Africa are exploited by Great Britain..."[SUP]
[9][/SUP] Roosevelt repeatedly brought the need for Indian independence to Churchill's attention, but was repeatedly rebuffed.[SUP]
[9][/SUP] However Gandhi and his party refused to help either the British or the American war effort against Germany and Japan in any way, leaving Roosevelt no choice but to back Churchill.[SUP]
[10][/SUP] India eventually ended up contributing significantly to the war effort, sending over 2.5 million men (the largest volunteer force in the world at the time) to fight for the Allies, mostly in West Asia and North Africa. [SUP]
[11][/SUP]