Reasons Japan Attacked Pearl Harbor
The decision by Japan to attach Pearl Harbor was obviously one of the turning points of World War II. What, however, were the reasons Japan Attacked Pearl Harbor, an act they came to regret?
Reasons Japan Attacked Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor occurred on December 7, 1941. In the words of Franklin D. Roosevelt, it was “a day that will live in infamy”. Many military personnel and civilians perished in the bombing that occurred that day. The entire United States plunged into despair and the attitude of isolation in regard to foreign events ended. The events at Pearl Harbor led the United States to enter into World War II, and changed the entire scope of history. The question is, what were the reasons Japan attacked Pearl Harbor?
The back story on the reasons Japan attacked Pearl Harbor is long and filled with conflict. After the first World War, Japan was put in charge of many of Imperial Germany's colonies located in the Far East. This led to a thirst for more conquest. By the 1930's, Japan had established a large army and navy. The next step was to begin attacks on their hated neighbor – China. The US, along with other countries in the League of Nations, found this to be deplorable and condemned Japan, sanctioning the country with diplomatic pressure. Japan didn't buckle under this pressure, however, so by 1941 the United States shut off Japan financially as well as issuing a complete oil embargo.
The oil embargo was bad news for Japan, which received 80 percent of its oil from the US. The country was forced to make a decision: back down from their quest to take over China and comply with the US and other countries, or go to war. Japan knew that if they chose not to leave China, they would risk war with the US and possibly other countries as well, but they chose that risk. As early as in the beginning of 1941, Japan, and especially Commander Yamamoto, began planning an attack on Pearl Harbor.
As the main reasons Japan attacked Pearl Harbor were to not show deference to the United States, they wanted to make the attack large and devastating. Commander Yamamoto figured if Japan wiped out the US naval fleet stationed at Pearl Harbor, the US Navy would be forced to retreat to California and regroup so Japan would have more time to create their “Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere”. This plan called for Japanese troops to eliminate the United States' influence in the Pacific as well as targeting other countries' military operations at the same time.
For the most part, Japan's plan went well and the attack on Pearl Harbor was considered a total success on Japan's part. There was one particular problem with the attack – many of the naval aircraft carriers were out of port and unharmed. This enabled the US to quickly react to the attack and take the war to Japan in the Pacific. As history tells us, this resulted in the defeat of Japan in World War II. Whatever the reasons Japan attacked Pearl Harbor for, the desired end result did not happen.
