Chapter Four, Part Eight: Sino-Japanese War / Japanese-American War
Jun 1942 - Aug 1942
Previously in the Influence Wars...
The Guangxi Clique collapsed and the Chinese made several counter-attacks. Supply problems greatly hamper any progress in China. In North Africa, the Italians gained the initiative.
And now, the conclusion...
War in China
June
In early June the Chinese managed to dislodge the Japanese defenders from Hanzhong and Xi'an. Due to critical shortage of ammunition, the Japanese soldiers often had to resort to bayonet charges. They had orders to give ground only as a last resort, as the idea of a general withdrawal from outermost outposts in Central China was generally frowned upon in the offensive-minded Imperial General Headquarters. Proper reorganisation of our forces was very difficult to conduct in low-supply conditions, so the only thing that really slowed the Chinese down was terrain.
In the South our armies have been more successful. The Canton HQ received orders to start a counter-offensive in Southern China as soon as possible, with the long-term goal being the conquest of Kunming. The first phase involved a push up to the Pearl River. Unlike in Central China, the Japanese troops did not lack supplies in coastal areas and could count on the support of the naval guns. Japanese cruisers pounded the enemy positions day and night. Eventually, the Chinese cracked down and despite huge enemy numerical superiority, our brave soldiers scored a victory at Naleung.
July-August
In July we managed to make some gains near Changsha, but the important province of Changde came close to being taken by the enemy when they managed to defeat the under-supplied Japanese. The province remained under Japanese control only because of the arrival of fresh reinforcements, which involved... one division. Fewer than 7000 men stopped the advance of ~30000 Chinese troops.
Xi'an changed hands several times during July. However, as of 1st of August the Japanese soldiers control the province, although the Chinese are harassing them. The Administration believes that logistics will be the deciding factor during the battle - if we manage to bring enough supplies to the area, we should be able to hold it.
Overviews
Taking everything into account, the last two months were inconclusive. It appears that the Chinese offensive potential is still limited, despite the fact that they managed to make some gains in Central and Southern China. The Administration believes there is no risk of the collapse of the whole frontline. However, after some initial successes our southern offensive stalled. In Central China the situation remains uncertain. Our supply situation remains poor in this region and as a result many of our divisions have little combat capability. In the North there is much potential for making progress. After several infantry divisions with additional engineer regiments and light bombers with modern drop tanks were transferred to Northern China, the local commanders were bold enough to start an offensive in Yulin. Yan'an remains outside of our reach for now, but considering that the communists are isolated now, it may change soon.
The Pacific Theatre
The Paramushiro Campaign
Much to our surprise, in the first half of June the Americans performed an attack on an island of Paramushiro and quickly overwhelmed the local garrison. The Administration believes that the enemy used various ports on the Aleutian Islands as forward bases and this allowed him to reach Paramushiro. The island itself is rather unimportant, but it is in close proximity to Japan itself, so if the Americans remained in control, they could potentially threaten our homeland. This could not be tolerated. Unfortunately, all of our battlefleets were performing escort and patrol duties on the other side of the Pacific and it took time to move them back to Japan. Marines had to be moved from Hawaii, too. All this meant that our counter-invasion could not begin until 3rd of July.
While the American attack looks dangerous on paper, few people in Japan were deeply worried about it. The civilian population was not informed of the American move in order to prevent any potential panic breakout from happening, while the officers knew that the Americans would not be able to supply more than a few divisions on Paramushiro, so their only real chance for making lasting gains was to perform a lightning quick attack on Hokkaido and it soon became apparent that they wasted that opportunity.
Surprisingly, the enemy did not oppose us at sea. Apart from a single insignificant and inconclusive clash with the American destroyers, no naval battles took place in the region and soon enough, the island was back in our hands. The Americans clearly did not want to repeat the mistake they made at Saipan,
It is possible that the whole affair was just a decoy. We were forced to move the bulk of our Navy back to our home waters and the American submarines could roam free for about a month. However, if the Americans have planned something bigger, then they yet have to reveal their true intentions. The Administration advocates caution - the Hawaiian islands are relatively poorly protected and it is possible that the Americans may strike there.
This invasion proved that as long as the Americans control the Aleutian Islands, they can reach islands that are close to our homeland. The conquest of the American outposts on the Aleutian Islands should be considered.
Clash with the American submarines
The only other event of note was the naval clash with the American submarines near the Mexican coast in June. Our SAG managed to destroy three submarine flotillas which were attacking our convoys in this region.
Unfortunately, our long trade and supply lines continue to be very vulnerable to the attacks of enemy submarines.
Other matters
Europe and North Africa
While the situation in Ukraine is still a stalemate, the Germans have managed to conduct the first major offensive in months in former Estonia. It appears that their main goal is the conquest of Leningrad, but it is uncertain whether they will be able to reach that far.
The British have opened a new front in Spain. While it is doubtful that they will be able to make considerable progress there, it seems that the Allied strategy is to force the Axis to spread their forces so that they will not be able to make long-lasting gains in Russia.
Instability in Africa has reached its zenith. The French authority is almost non-existent in the region and a bunch of rebels managed to create an entity which they even call a "state". Therefore, it can now be said without any doubt that a civil war is ongoing in Morocco.
The Italians continue to regain lost territory in Libya. The Administration believes that the main cause of the collapse of the British frontline was poor supply situation. It is possible that once the supply lines are shortened, the Commonwealth forces will regain the initiative.
Japanese economy and the state of the Japanese military
The collapse of the Guangxi Clique has forced us to invest more resources into the infrastructure development program in China. The first results should be visible in about a month.
The construction of 2 light cruisers and a battlecruiser was finished at last. Due to recent developments in China, we were forced to reduce the scope of our shipbuilding program and now only 2 light cruisers remain in construction. The budget reserved for aircraft production was decreased, too. The budget of the Imperial Japanese Army, on the other hand, was increased. Six new infantry divisions have been formed and some of them are already fighting in Southern China. The training of new special mountain divisions has begun and we expect to have 4 divisions by the end of the year. Moreover, the Army managed to form its first tank destroyer brigade - hopefully, the first of many which will make up the Japanese mechanised forces.
However, by far our biggest investment at the moment is the construction of the first Japanese rocket test site in Kochi. Although very costly and time-consuming, this secret project is somewhat of a necessity if Japan wants to remain competitive technologically-wise in the air.
List of researched techs:
Artillery Barrel and Ammunition, Amphibious Warfare Equipment, Light Cruiser Anti-Aircraft Armament, Rocket Tests, Bridging Equipment, Assault Weapons, Steel Production, Defensive Support Weapons, Man-portable Anti-Tank Weapons, Small Warship Radar, Industrial Production, Coal Processing Technologies.
Military intelligence