Why were Japan and the United States fighting in World War 2?

Answer 1

After the Sino-Japanese War of 1894, Japan felt it was not receiving it's fair share of the spoils of war. In 1904 this led to a war against Russia. In that treaty in 1905, Japan felt it wasn't getting it's fair share of the victor's portion, and continued to build up it's military for the next war. In WWI, Japan was an ally against the Central Powers (Germany, Ottoman Empire), and felt again it wasn't getting it's fair share of the spoils of war. Great Britain had inserted a little bit of competition in Asia, at Singapore, etc. So when WWII came, Japan was particulary ruthless.

Answer 2

On December 7th, 1941 a Japanese task force consisting of 6 aircraft carriers, 2 battleships, 3 cruisers, 9 destroyers, 8 tankers, 23 fleet submarines, and 5 midget submarines approached the Hawaiian Islands and launched 441 warplanes that swept over Oahu bombing Kaneohe Bay Marine Base, Schofield Barracks, and the Naval Base at Pearl Harbor as well as some possibly stray bombs in neighborhoods and overzealous strafing of civilian areas. It was an unprovoked military attack that caused great damage to the Pacific Fleet. Overall, twenty-one ships of the U.S. Pacific fleet were damaged and the death toll reached 2,403 with 1,178 injured. The USS Utah and the USS Arizona were sunk. Both remain at rest as monuments on the bottom of Pearl Harbor; the Arizona has a monument erected over it which includes the names of those who remain interred below her decks. All ships damaged returned to the war effort except for the Arizona, the Utah, and the Oklahoma. The US was not at this time involved in World War II although the US was in a diplomatic struggle over the Imperialistic conquest/colonialization of Asia and the Pacific by Japan and was embargoing oil and scrap metal from them at the time. US Carriers were not docked at the time (one at Wake Island, one at Midway and one returning from Puget Sound via San Diego) and the carrier fleet and the US Marines eventually carried the war to Japan, recapturing islands across the Pacific, setting up a chain of bases and supply lines which would have been necessary for a military invasion of Japan. Plans for the invasion projected massive loss of life including women and children in Japan due to the Imperial concept of "Total War" which placed production facilities and military value targets among civilian populations, and placed civilians for work within them. Simultaneous to the Pacific campaign, the Manhattan Project worked to harness the power of Atomic fission, culminating in the development and first use of atomic weapons in warfare against the Japanese home islands. The loss of life from the use of two Atomic bombs several days apart is thought by some to have actually prevented loss of life on a much larger scale on both sides. Although the destructive power of these devices was theoretically understood by the US scientists and military it is likely that hostile feelings towards Japanese people in general contributed to the decision to use the atomic weapons. There is much debate about the ethics of using these weapons today and the debate will continue. In addition to the unprovoked surprise attack on installation in Hawaii, the Japanese Imperial Army were attributed with atrocities in Asia and the Pacific, including those famously committed in Nanking, the Philippines, and Bataan as well as other places. Xenophobia and racsim undoubtedly fueled the hostility toward Japanese people in America and one truly tragic outcome of the genesis of WWII was the internment of thousands of Japanese Americans following the attack in 1941. Many Americans of Japanese descent were three generations or more in the US at the time; some lost their livelihoods, homes, and property due to the internment action. There were reparations paid for the internment process by the US government in 1988, and an additional appropriation was made in 1992.

Answer 3

The simple answer is Pearl Harbor. Race was a major factor in World War II. It was a central aspect of German policy. It was also a major aspect of Japanese policy. Look at how the Japanese treated Americans and other westerners they interned, many of whom did not survive. Race was not a major aspect of America's World War II objectives, but America was still a largely racist country. So many Americans suspected that Japanese Americans were sympathetic to Japan. Ironically, Japanese in Hawaii were not interned, only those along the Pacific coast. While they were not treated abusively, many lost their property because of the short notice provided in the internment order. Some Japanese volunteered for military service and distinguished themselves in combat in both Italy and France. The internment was a great abuse of basic civil liberties, but in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor their was great fear. And in other countries, ethnic minorities did assist Axis invaders. It is of course easy to criticize steps taken in hast under great pressure. It should be noted that after the War, the difficulties that Japanese Americans had enrting college, getting jobs, buying houses, ect disappeared very quickly. Rather a surprising outcome of the War.

Answer 4

pearl harbor