The correct answer is: "needed to establish puppet governments in Europe".
After WWII, the US adopted a containment approach in foreign policy, with the main aim of stopping the spread of communism and, therefore, blocking the expansion of the URSS both in terms of influence and territories. As Eastern Europe was already under the influence of the URSS, the US wanted the main powers from Western Europe to side with the US against the communist. This is why the US designed programs such as the Marshall Plan, through which a lot of money was sent to help rebuild Western European countries. With such tecniques, the US sought to gain influence over those countries.
