Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor?

Ever wondered why Japan attacked Pearl Harbor? In this article, we are going to talk a little about this historic event that changed the course of the world and started the end of World War II.

First we must understand why the Japanese were in the war. Japan wanted to expand its power by conquering other countries in Asia and several islands in the Pacific Ocean. Japan has a long history of wars, both internal and external.

Japan needed to expand its territory due to scarcity of natural resources, which forced the country to import almost everything from abroad. At the time, the country was ruled by a group of extremely nationalist military who believed in war.

Japan's Attack on Pearl Harbor

Japan wanted to follow the example of the colonialist powers of Europe, which had a great influence on Japanese culture in previous years. When Hitler started the war against Europe, the Japanese considered it a good opportunity to expand their territory in Asia.

It was on December 7, 1941, early in the morning, the Japanese bombed the North American base at Pearl Harbor, located in Hawaii. It was a bloody and violent event, where it killed more than 2,000 Americans, injured many people and destroyed many ships.

Why did Japan attack the Americans at Pearl Harbor?

The attack was essential for Japan to enter the war and led, a few days later, to the declaration of war on the United States by Germany and Italy. Thus, it officially brought about the Second World War.

At the time of the attack, the Japanese already controlled half of the Pacific and occupied countries such as Thailand, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, Burma and the Philippines. Because of this, Japan suffered many problems with the United States, which led to the attack.

Japan's entire attack on Pear Harbor was meticulously planned even years in advance. During this period Japan had pacifist representatives who negotiated with the US, disguising and taking Pear Harbor by surprise.

Why did Japan attack the Americans at Pearl Harbor?

Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor?

The United States represented an obstacle to Japanese expansion in the Pacific Ocean. Therefore, the Japanese military decided to attack Pearl Harbour, which was the main US naval base in the Pacific.

Not to mention that the relationship between Japan and the United States was not very good. A few months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States imposed an oil supply embargo on Japan in response to Japan's expansionist policy.

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor definitively marked the participation of Japan and the United States in World War II. Before, the United States only supported England against Germany, and Japan tried to expand in Asia.

Why did Japan attack the Americans at Pearl Harbor?

All this was the result of a war between Japan and China that took place some time before in 1932. In that year the Japanese invaded Manchuria looking for coal and ores. In 1937 Japan conquered even Shanghai and Nanjing.

In other words, World War II began even before Hitler attacked Poland. The United States did not like this war between Japan and China at all, thus breaking the trade treaty with Japan in the year 1939. This kind of influenced Japan to sign a treaty of cooperation with Nazi Germany and attack Pear Harbor.

Reasons to attack Pear Harbor were not lacking, in 1941 Japan advanced to the north of Indochina - Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia - exploring the place. The United States meddled and froze all Japanese assets that were in the US and embargoed oil imports.

Why did Japan attack the Americans at Pearl Harbor?

Of course, Japan was also to blame, as it refused diplomatic resolutions to leave China and nearby territories and insisted on continuing its expansion. Japan has a long history of civil wars, which explains its insistent attitude.

What resulted from the Pear Harbor attack?

We know that Pear Harbor made the Americans very angry with the Japanese, thus destroying two populated cities of Japan Hiroshima and Nagasaki with a nuclear bomb. The attack was also a surprise and killed 100x more innocent people.

Despite all these ills and disagreements between the United States and Japan, the nuclear event was necessary for Japan to let go of its long war history and become one of the most peaceful countries in the world, proving that a country can change.

Why did Japan attack the Americans at Pearl Harbor?

I wish Brazil would also stop being a corrupt country full of criminals to become a first world country like Japan. The same thing happened to Singapore and a few other countries around the globe, which rose from the ashes and climbed the mountain.

The current relationship between the Americans and the Japanese is quite positive. The Japanese are currently very influenced by American culture and the country is full of Americans, especially the region of Okinawa, where the military base is located.

After the second world war, Japan had to sign an agreement between the USA promising that it would not get involved in wars, making the United States responsible for defending Japan, becoming great allies.

Why did Japan attack the Americans at Pearl Harbor?

Of course, it didn't come for free. Japan owes a huge debt to the United States, even though it is responsible for the highest number of deaths. Yet both countries are influenced by both cultures.

Currently Japanese visit Hawaii, have a passport with free entry to the United States and many other perks that Brazilians do not have. Despite the resentment of some people who suffered from the war, both countries manage to see each other with good eyes.

I hope this article helped you understand how and why the Japanese attacked Pear Harbor. What did you think of this article? If you liked it, don't forget to share and leave your comments.

Read more articles from our website

Thanks for reading! But we would be happy if you take a look at other articles below:

Read our most popular articles:

Do you know this anime?