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Japan was never a colony, and Vietnam was a french colony for several generations. You are not getting your examples right.

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Vietnam was addressed as less successful. And Japan was treated like a colony after WW2, like Germany. Both lost most autonomy.

West Germany remained occupied for about 4 years and then quickly transitioned to a high degree of independence (because of Cold War strategy reasons).

Additionally it had been fully developed for hundreds of years so there can be no comparison.

It still has American military bases. The war ended in 1945.

It didn't get a choice in receiving them, unlike other countries.

It absolutely has that choice now. There are various benefits to having them, mostly economic.

Yeah, 80 years of occupation and stabilization later they sure could. That's why we did it, to prepare them to support themselves again but from a more stable base.

But what's your point? That colonization doesn't always work? Sure.

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