Japan’s Strategy; Relations with the US

In order to meet the needs of its expanding population and empire, Japan’s leaders began looking hungrily to the south and east. Three years after invading China, Japanese military forces occupied French Indochina. This, combined with American support for China, put Japan on a collision course with the US. Would the two powers be able to avoid war? In this episode, James and Scott tell the story of the dangerous “dance” between imperial Japan and the United States in 1940 and 1941.