The United Nations label is a figleaf that gets stuck on various American operations to "legitimize" them and conceal their naked ambitions. That's a standard political technique used by major powers to persuade people that they are not acting alone. And they're not. But they are acting in their own interests and getting other minor players onside to make it look good. That's a PR job.

The invasion of the Soviet Union in 1945 wasn't just a German operation either. It was an Axis operation, assisted by Rumania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, and Finland. This didn't fool anyone into thinking that it was a legitimate thing to do except the Axis powers themselves. It was essentially a German operation with some minor allies joining in for various pragmatic reasons. The Afghanistan operation was essentially an American operation with some minor allies joining in for various pragmatic reasons, and the U.N. is the rubber stamp they used to supposedly legitimize it. How do they achieve that? Through the Security Council, and the Security Council only represents the direct interests of a few large nations and a temporary token small nation, nations who usually find ways to act in concert, just as the Axis members acted in concert in WWII.

It's legitimate if you're with them. It's not if you aren't.

As for the American contractors (and mercenaries) who have benefited from various construction and security-related projects in Iraq, I think there are quite a number of them, one being Haliburton, another being Blackwater. Why don't you look them up yourself? Do you really think I wish to spend my time doing research on your behalf just because you want me to? It's common knowledge that a number of large American contractors have benefited from work that came to them as a result of the wars and occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan. That's big business, and it's lucrative. Politicians reward their best friends in business when such situations occur and such opportunities arise. That isn't just true in the USA, it's true everywhere.