Why didn't the US fight the Japanese before they attacked?

Answer 1

Although we had disagreements with Japan which we were trying to resolve through negotiation, we did not want war and were not willing to fight about those differences. We had no idea at all that the Japanese fleet had sailed across the Pacific or that it was anywhere near Hawaii. Michael Montagne

Answer 2

Answer: Because the bombs were not ready.

(I assume the question is specifically about the use of a nuclear weapon; the US had been bombing Japan with conventional weapons.)

Remember, the devices represented the cutting edge of science at the time. The mathematics and physics were developed and the units were engineered more or less simultaneously. Also, to a great extent the project was held up by the slow process of enriching uranium. Once these factors were in place, no time was wasted: engineers in New Mexico had enough fissile material for two military devices and a test device on July 10, 1945; the test device was detonated on July 16; Hiroshima was bombed on August 6th - Nagasaki, three days later.

For more information, see:

The Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, by the United States

A report compiled by the Manhattan Engineer District of the United States Army under the direction of Major General Leslie R. Groves, dated June 29, 1946; available as an EBook in several formats from Project Gutenberg.

[EBook #685]

Answer 3

The Japanese ambassador to the United States tried to type up a declaration of war to give the US government, but it was so secret that they were told not to use any of their secretaries. The ambassador's assistant was so slow at typing, that the declaration was not finished by the time Pearl Harbor was attacked.

Answer 4

It was never the Japanese plan to invade the continental United States. They considered invading Hawaii, however they didn't have enough troops or support ships to do that either.

They hoped for only a short war with the US that ended with a negotiated settlement. They hoped or planned to defeat US forces in the Pacific, not the entire nation. The Japanese knew that they could not defeat the United States in an all-out long war. They hoped that the United States would lose its will to fight after suffering setbacks.

From a practical military capabilities point-of-view, the Japanese had almost no capability to launch a successful invasion so far from their homeland. Japan was already bogged down in its invasion and occupation of China. Economically & logistically, the Japanese were way over their heads in this new war against the USA which was a much more powerful nation than China.

It is also doubtful that the Japanese military could have seized and held Hawaii or Midway Islands, in the late 1941 & early 1942 period.

Answer 5

The Japanese DID invade part of the United States during WW2. -In June 1942 Japanese soldiers occupied the islands of Attu and Kiska, in the Aleutian chain, off Alaska. While this may seem far away and insignificant in terms of the Pacific War, it tied up large elements of the US Navy and the entire Eleventh Army Air Force. It took over a year to get rid of the Japanese force. - It ended in August 1943 when almost 35.000 Allied soldiers of the US 7th Infantry Div. and the Canadian 13th Infantry Brigade invaded Kiska. - This campaign cost the Allies almost 5,000 casualties, 225 aircraft lost and a destroyer and 2 submarines sunk.

Answer 6

The United States did not take any action against Japan before the attack on Pearl Harbor because they wished to remain neutral. The signs of an attack was known about 24 hours before it happened. Scholars believe that the attack was not countered against because of the economic gain from going to war.

Answer 7

the US wanted to stay out as long as possible