Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you.
Posted on 04/25/2026 3:27:15 PM PDT by Texan4Life
In the summer of 1905, two men held a private conversation in Tokyo that the world wouldn't find out about for nearly two decades. No treaty was signed. No announcement was made. But in that room, the United States quietly handed an entire nation over to colonial rule — and set in motion a chain of events that would end at Pearl Harbor forty years later.
This is the story of the Taft-Katsura Agreement, the secret deal that validated Japanese imperial ambition at the exact moment it needed validation most. We cover the Meiji Restoration and Japan's transformation from feudal island to industrial war machine, the shock of the Russo-Japanese War and what Japan's victory over Russia actually meant for the global order, the Treaty of Portsmouth and the riots it triggered at home, and the quiet three-point conversation between William Howard Taft and Prime Minister Katsura Taro that traded Korea's sovereignty for American security in the Philippines.
From the annexation of Korea in 1910, to the Manchuria invasion of 1931, to the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 — the thread runs straight.
(Excerpt) Read more at youtu.be ...
|
|
Click here: to donate by Credit Card Or here: to donate by PayPal Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794 Thank you very much and God bless you. |
The most significant battle of WWII was one few people know about, and wasn’t even publicized by both sides at the time, it was the Battle of Kalkhin Gol in 1939.
The Soviet victory, changed Japan’s course from going for Siberia, to turning their focus to the Pacific and Southeast Asia.
It also meant Japan was never going to help the Germans against the Soviets. It was an “Axis” in name only.
The most significant battle of WWII was one few people know about, and wasn’t even publicized by both sides at the time, it was the Battle of Kalkhin Gol in 1939.
Interesting points I had forgotten. It was a complex war.
Each success only buys an admission ticket to a more difficult problem.
Henry Kissinger
When I visited Mongolia I went to their WWII museum. They were very proud of their involvement.
It also led to the rise of a Soviet general named “Zhukov”.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongolian_Military_Museum
It explains Mongolian military history dating back to the Mongol Empire.
Oh yeah, I want a guy like that making deals for me. /s
Like it or not it’s a true statement!
A huge part of it was the way the Japanese were treated at Versailles. They were good allies in WWI. But at Versailles, we and the Brits and their minions straight up flipped them the finger and told them they were inferior.
Each success only buys an admission ticket to a more difficult problem.
Your eyes went to “more problems”, they skipped over “each success.”
All of that hardware could almost double as a bulletproof vest...
;^)
Where does the Battle of Midway fit in the hierarchy?
Hmmm...
Just more stupid: “should’a, would’a, could’a.”
Japan knew that both the Soviets and Imperial China were subversively attempting to sway the weak Korean Royal government into a pact with either one, each with its own purpose - the Soviets wanted to get bases in Korea, putting them closer to Japan, and China just wanted Korea to favor, and kowtow to it. The Royals just wanted independence but treasonous and corrupt individuals in the upper class were vying to make treasonous deals in support of either the Japanese, the Chinese or the Soviets. [political divisions were already significant in Korea - which meant real unity for independence was severely compromised - and the inherent military weakness of Korea gave credence to the corrupt to try to make deals that would keep themselves in good stead].
The U.S. was not wanting to militarily defend Korea from anyone (at that time), and as the article notes, the U.S. was concerned about security of its own Asian colony - The Philippines.
But making a deal with Imperial Japan was like making a deal with the Mullahs in Tehran - it would be broken at their convenience and is/was only made to buy time for more favorable future developments.
No. It went to how GHWB screwed up what Reagan accomplished.
The latter operated in Kissinger mode. The former did not.
There truly are ways to avoid self-fulfilling prophecies, such as Kissinger's.
(One of my favorite movies... ;^)
... That battle & the American oil embargo the shut off 90% off Japan’s petroleum. Japan’s shiny new deep water Navy was going to be tied up at the pier when Japan’s oil reserves ran out. It became “use it or lose it.” The Dutch East Indies became the strategic target of necessity. Their oil production trumped the Japanese Army’s ambitions in the Soviet Far East.
It became “use it or lose it.”
A lot of wars start precisely because of that sentiment.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.