page_title: Diplomatic history of World War II
section_title: Japan
hierarchical_section_title: Diplomatic history of World War II / Axis / Japan
caption_attribution_description: English: Adolf Hitler meeting Japanese ambassador to Germany Hiroshi Ōshima
context_page_description: The diplomatic history of World War II includes the major foreign policies and interactions inside the opposing coalitions, the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers. The military history of the war is covered at World War II. The prewar diplomacy is covered in Causes of World War II and International relations.
context_section_description: Japan had conquered all of Manchuria and most of China by 1939 in the Second Sino-Japanese War, but the Allies refused to recognize the conquests.  Japan joined the Axis with Germany, but shared little information.  Japan depended on imports from the Allies for 90% of its oil, and the cutoff of oil shipments in mid-1941 left Japan with supplies for only a year or two of serious combat by its warships and warplanes unless it came to terms regarding China, or seized oil fields controlled by Britain and the Netherlands. The latter course meant war, and was urged by army officials who had been bloodied in border conflicts and were reluctant to engage the Soviets. Some admirals and many civilians, including Prime Minister Konoe Fumimaro, believed that a war with the U.S. would end in defeat. The alternative was loss of honor and power. Diplomats proposed political compromises in the form of the "Amau Doctrine", dubbed the "Japanese Monroe Doctrine" which would have given the Japanese free rein with regard to  China. These proposals were rejected by the U.S.; the Japanese Army now demanded a military solution.
caption: Adolf Hitler meeting Japanese ambassador to Germany Hiroshi Ōshima, 1942
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