1921 Imperial Conference

The 1921 Imperial Conference was held from 18 March to 9 April 1921. It was chaired by British Prime Minister David Lloyd George. 
In the wake of drastic changes in geopolitics, given the end of the Great War and the wave of revolutions that succeeded it. Of chief importance was the relationship with the United States and Japan, and whether to renew the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, which was due to expire on 13 July 1921. Australia and New Zealand were strongly in favour of renewing the alliance, feeling that the British Empire needed a strong ally in the Pacific. Canada, on the other hand, felt that the Empire should pursue closer relations with the United States instead, given Canada's border and friendly relations with the ascendant nation. 
One determining factor in favour of renewing the alliance with Japan was the issue of the Russian SFSR, which along with the Socialist Republic of Germany was one of two new communist powers in the world. Fearing the spread of communist influence in the Pacific, and feeling that, as Japan had taken an active role in intervening against Red forces in the Russian Civil War, it would form an effective buffer against communism, the Anglo-Japanese Alliance was renewed. 
Some have speculated that this decision contributed to deepening the United States' isolationism. One consequence of this has been the increased investment in Canada's military, as the United States' status as an ally is in question. Nevertheless, relations between the United States and Canada under its decade-long Liberal government have remained cordial, despite a cooling of relations between the United States and the United Kingdom itself. Many commentators have noted that this period has marked an assertion by the Canadian government of its own autonomy. 
Category:Imperial Conferences