Why did Japan colonize the Philippines?

Answer 1

The Japanese began to colonize the Philippines because they were running out of space and resources. Their country is four big islands that were recently formed by volcanoes, meaning that they have limited mineral and metal resources. This forced the Japanese to colonize and attempt to take over other nations, such as the Philippines, which has a number of these resources. Also, the Philippines serves as a gateway to conquer Southeast Asia, which Japan proceeded to do once the Philippines were conquered.

Answer 2

Japan siezed control of the Philippines in May 1942 but were driven out 2½ years later in November 1944 (at least that's how long they were on Japan Time, UTC+9). It was the United States that acquired the Philippines from Spain in 1898 and granted them independence in 1946.