HIST 1010 Lecture : WORLD WAR TWO ASIA and M E.docx
Document Summary
Agenda: background: japan to 1941, war in pacific: the allies vs. japan, 1941-44, the middle east and north africa, defeat of japan & the dawn of the nuclear age. Reminders: imperial japan: about 70 million people in 1930s, had shaken off colonial yoke and become a major regional power, needed natural resources; wanted to dominate entire region, major threats to their agenda: china, ussr, us, great britain. Us provocation: august 1941, after japan seizes part of indochina, us freezes japanese assets and cuts off oil supplies. But the two sides are still in talks when japan decided to attack . Turning points: pearl harbour: december 7, 1941, six of eight us pacific battleships lost, much of pacific air fleet lost. Invasions of malaya, singapore, hong kong, thailand: also an attack on us-held philippines (major losses for us) However, japan was over-extended and the us was not.
