The only correct answer is the first statement, A. This war is considered by most historians as the entry of the United States in the age of New Imperialism.
New Imperialism is how historians call several European and other nations like the U.S. colonizing territories throughout the world to get access to more consumer markets and source materials.
The Spanish-American war is better classified as the Spanish-American-Cuban-Filipino War. This way we don't lose sight of all the interests and nations that were involved.
After the war of 1898, the U.S. had new territories that would support new areas of commerce. Hawaii, for example, was annexed in this context and served to protect American ships that started to continuously pass by. Puerto Rico and Cuba gave access to Latin America markets. Hawaii, Guam, and Philippines opened access to China.
