Chapter Four, Part One: Sino-Japanese War / Japanese-American War
Dec 1940 - May 1941
Previously in the Influence Wars...
The Japanese armies managed to form a big pocket near Wuhan and destroyed all trapped Chinese divisions. However, the Chinese made a major counter-attack in northern and southern China.
In Europe, the Soviet Union declared war on the German Reich and Germany was trapped in a two-front war. Despite this, they made big gains in Western Europe, while war in East looked like a stalemate. In North Africa, however, the Axis was clearly losing.
And now, the conclusion...
Politics
The beginning of the Japanese-American War
The beginning of the Japanese-American conflict was unequivocally the most important event of the several last months, if not the several last years. Therefore, it is very important to describe it in detail.
On 11th of January, the United States of America officially started mobilisation. We believe that unofficially it had been ongoing for months on smaller scale and the US government was simply trying to find or create the right excuse for official mobilisation. It is well known that President Roosevelt and his administration support interventionist foreign policy, but the bulk of the American public opinion does not want war. This isolationism served as a shield against US intervention in China, but even the strongest shields can be broken.
The US mobilisation was troubling for the Japanese leadership and many claimed that it was the failure of the foreign policy pursued by various cabinets formed in 1939-1940. The new situation required a strong leader and Konoe Fumimaro was no longer viewed as the right candidate. Therefore,
on 22th of January General Hideki Tojo was appointed as the new Prime Minister of Japan. General Tojo is a patriot, the Emperor's loyalist and a firm supporter of an alliance with Germany and Italy.
General Tojo believed that war with the West was inevitable and the only thing that could be done was to delay the beginning of the conflict with the West as long as possible and finish the war in China as soon as possible, so that the Japanese forces would gain more time to prepare for the upcoming conflict. General Tojo agreed with some of the senior members of the Army and the Navy who claimed that the Japanese industry should not be mobilised further in order not to cause the American and British reaction. Also, despite his strong support for Germany, he believed that joining the Axis would mean the war with the Soviet Union, something that the Empire could not afford.
Unfortunately, despite the best efforts to preserve peace as long as possible, the US warmongers still attacked us sooner than expected.
On 17th of May, President Roosevelt asked the Congress to authorise the beginning of hostilities against Japan. Despite the protests of the opposition, the authorisation was granted. In a demagogic speech full of blatant lies, the President accused Japan of "warmongering", "causing destabilisation in Asia and the Pacific" and "making intensive preparations for a strike on the US soil". He managed to convince many Americans that a strike against Japan is a pre-emptive war.
In the light of this event, the Imperial Administration feels obliged to clearly and openly state its full support for the actions of the Emperor and General Tojo and for the Holy War against China and the United States of America. The Administration will perform its duties even more diligently.
Europe and the Middle East
On
30th of December 1940, the French signed the armistice with the Germans and a pro-German French State was created in parts of southern France and North Africa. This was a major victory for the Germans, as it allowed them to focus on the Soviet Union and Scandinavia.
The German government has been searching for a way to distract the Allies for quite some time and when the opportunity presented itself in the Middle East, they took it immediately. Anti-British sentiment in Iraq was strong and Iraq joined the Axis still in 1940. Given the situation in North Africa, they obviously had no chance to survive very long, but the Germans had what they wanted - a distraction that could last several months (Iraq was conquered by the Allies in March).
Eastern Asia
On
January 1940, the alliance between the Chinese communists and nationalists came to an end. This came as a surprise to the Japanese government, as it was expected that the Chinese would manage to stay more or less united during war with Japan. The theory is that recent Chinese defeats caused internal disorder among their ranks. Naturally, everything that weakens the Chinese is beneficial to the Empire.
However, since most of the Chinese warlords supported the nationalists, Kuomintang was able to strengthen its rule. The nationalists gained full control over Yunnan and they managed to persuade Xinjiang to join the war against Japan.
War in China
In the second half of December, the Japanese soldiers not only managed to stop the Chinese counter-attack in the North, but also to start a powerful offensive on their own. At least three Chinese divisions were encircled and the Chinese were being pushed back along the whole front.
In the last day of January, the Japanese troops took Changde.
The Third Battle of Changde was not as bloody as the first and second ones and the casualty ratio was very favourable for us.
The disorganisation caused by the continuation of the Chinese Civil War hastened the collapse of the Chinese defence lines in northern China and by February all territory lost in the latest Chinese counter-attacked was reconquered and the Japanese troops started new conquests. The primary goals were the conquest of Chongqing and various northern Chinese cities and the encirclement of the communist mountain strongholds. Unfortunately, the terrain became even harsher than before and combined with the Chinese numbers, the mountains and the jungles were very hard obstacles to overcome. As a result, most battles in the region were very bloody.
In the South, Bose changed hands several times. The city was named the Baofeng of the South by the soldiers and for good reasons - whoever managed to gain control over it did not remain in control for a long time. However, considering that Baofeng was eventually conquered and secured by the Japanese troops, we believe that one day Bose will meet the same fate. As of 17th of May, we control the city.
Combined Japanese-Chinese southern offensives in Chongqing and Guiyang failed and several thousand Japanese and pro-Japanese Chinese men lost their lives in the process. The masses of enemies protecting those provinces were simply overwhelming.
Economy, war readiness and other matters
Two new warships - a light carrier and a light cruiser - were finished in March. The shipyards immediately started the production of two modern light cruisers, which will surely be needed in the war against the USA. Additionally, a new fighter wing and several infantry and garrison divisions were formed.
Various infrastructure development programs in China were finished and although the general program is not completed yet, the state of infrastructure in China is already much better than it was before and we managed to expand the Hirohito Line considerably.
Tons of new equipment are being produced in order to equip many new infantry divisions and new fighter wings. Our supply production had to be increased in order to meet the greater demand, but we expect that the current efforts are not enough and it will have to be increased even further.
List of researched technologies:
Light Cruiser AA, Education, Fire Control System Training, Single Engine Airframe, ASW Tactics, Fighter Ground Crew Training, Commander Decision Making, Central Decision Making, Central Fighter Command Structure, Armoured Car Armour, Radar Training, AT Ammunition and Muzzle Velocity, CAs Ground Crew Training, Light AA Armament, Combat Medicine, Security Training, Electronic Computing Machine.
Currently our engineers and planners are working on the development of tank destroyers and mechanised infantry formations and we should be ready to start production of necessary equipment in May and June, respectively.
Generally, it was expected that hostilities between Japan and the USA would not be started before 1942, so the Japanese military is not as ready for the war with the USA as we would like it to be. Most of our divisions and all of our airforce are still engaged in China and two available CTFs are supporting the operations in southern and northern China. However, our SAGs are currently docked at ports and waiting for orders. Whether the current composition of our fleets is optimal or not is unclear - their performance was good against the token Chinese Navy, but the American Navy is a much more formidable enemy.
It should be noted that in some cases there are massive differences between the capabilities of our most modern ships and their older equivalents, e.g. the difference between the available firepower of the IJN Yamato and the old battlecruiser IJN Kirishima are immense. Also, not all of our ships have been equipped with modern AA guns and scout planes yet and we definitely lack modern escort ships.
Overviews
*Note the Allied offensive in Denmark
---------------
Meeting of the Imperial General Headquarters
*IGH have been recently reactivated, as the High Command was deemed insufficient for the purposes of the war with the USA
*Before you arrive at the meeting, you are approached by strange men who are most likely Kempeitai officers working undercover in civilian clothes. They make it clear to you that you are expected to "willingly" state your full approval of the war with the USA and full support for the Axis armies fighting in Europe. Apparently, your previous lacklustre support for the fascists and reluctance to the prospect of joining the Axis gained some unwanted attention.
Emperor's Speech
Honoured Members of the Imperial Japanese Military,
We meet today in this building which started to resemble a giant bunker in order to face our fears openly and honourably. We already know the facts, now we need to address them.
The task at hand may seem daunting, but if we succumb to fear and cowardice, the Nation will surely be ruined. If we are to win this war and prosper, in the following days, weeks, months and probably even years, each Japanese General and Admiral, every member of the Japanese society will have to use all of their abilities to the uttermost.
While it is a clear failure of our policies that we did not choose the moment for the outbreak of hostilities, it is My will that we do not delve too deeply into fighting with the past and instead look straight into the eyes of the future. The Nation needs to stay united in the face of a crisis.
General Hideki Tojo will serve as my right-hand in the meetings of the Imperial General Headquarters and whenever I am not present, his words are to be treated as my own.
I expect nothing less than total loyalty from each and every one of you, as the Empire shall need every ounce of it in order to assume its rightful place under the Sun.
Hideki Tojo's Speech
Blessed be the Emperor and the Empire He rules!
It goes without saying that when survival is threatened, struggles erupt between peoples, and unfortunate wars between nations result. The United States of America clearly does not want to accept the position Japan is destined to take in Asia. As every imperialist nation, they do not want to share - they only want to control. They are the threat to the very survival of our Nation.
As the reserves we currently have at our disposal are clearly not sufficient to conduct a full-scale war against the Americans, our resources will need to be split between the Pacific Theatre and the Chinese Theatre. I believe that China should still be our first priority and we should dedicate our efforts to end the war in China as soon as possible. Therefore, it is our foremost duty to protect the shipping lines to Korea and China, vital to the war effort.
I think that recent events convinced everyone that we should immediately mobilise our economy for war. Our military efforts take priority before anything else.
Chongqing is currently the most important Chinese city and we should try to take it as soon as possible. In the Pacific, the Philippines is the most obvious and the most immediate threat. As long as the Americans control the Philippines, our shipping lines to China cannot be safe. In fact, Japan itself cannot be safe, as the American long-range bombers may be able to reach our homeland from their bases in the Philippines - something that we simply cannot tolerate.
Under no conditions the troops currently stationed in Manchuria are to be moved to other theatres. We need to guard ourselves against every eventuality, including the Soviet aggression. If the communists strike in Manchuria and we are not able to defend it, our entire effort in China will be wasted.
We also need to accept the fact that sooner or later, the British may support the Americans. Therefore, contingency plans have to be created for the potential war with the British Empire.
