Quote:
Originally Posted by mexihiperboreo
As world war 2, being in Poland in Europe, Japan was having his own war between his neigboordhoods in half continent Asiatic, his primary and most rouft war was in Manchurria, China. Nevertheless, as german-sovietic pact was temporary and invasion to the Soviet Union was inmienent, Japan has a pact with the Axis Power which constit in antiComunism politics, but Japan has no intension to strike the soviets, he instead attack the U.S (??), which its inteligence service told them they has no chances to win a war in full scale vs U.S.
If Japan had not attack the U.S and decided, well either attack the soviets or do "nothing" (because they had a war), the profile would the :
Where they still be an Asiatic most powerful Empire?
Have they conserved all the territory gain? (Manchurria, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Malasia, Philipin Islands, both Corea)
What do you thing?
Judge another history that it would have not been far away (more real than imagine)...
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Japan didn't attack America because they wanted a prolonged war, they attacked because they believed that a complete victory at Pearl Harbor would eliminate America's ability to defend it's allies in the Pacific.
At the time, the West and South Pacific were heavily colonized by Europe. Holland controlled much of the Indies, Britain ruled India, Malaya, and Singapore, and the French ruled Vietnam and most of Polynesia.
Despite the importance of these colonial territories to their European masters, the countries of Europe were unable to properly defend them, as they were busy fighting the Germans face-to-face. The only western nation with a naval presence strong enough to neutralize Japan was America.
You also forget that early in the war, Hitler and Stalin had signed a non-aggression pact, meaning that Hitler promised not to invade the Soviet Union, so long as Stalin didn't interfere with Hitler's plans. Since Japan had allied itself with Germany, that pact would also have prevented Japan from attacking the Soviet Union.
The Japanese hoped that destroying the American fleet in the Pacific would either cause America to lose it's stomach for war against Japan (which would have been difficult with no Navy to fight with), or failing that, to at least delay America's ability to interfere with Japan's invasion of the rest of Asia until Japan had consolidated it's strength, and been able to use the resources gained to keep America out of the West and South Pacific.
Unfortunately for Japan, their victory at Pearl Harbor was not as decisive as they had hoped. US aircraft carriers were untouched, and many of the other ships were not completely destroyed, and were quickly repaired.