The Rise of the Third Reich

Although it is already a hot summer day, the sunshine spreading all over the streets of Tokyo still seems a bit cold to those who are familiar with this big city.

In this largest international metropolis in the Far East, the asphalt roads are empty and there are no cars speeding by. The shops on both sides of the road that should be filled with all kinds of dazzling goods are now mostly empty, with nothing for sale and few customers. Long queues form only in front of a few specialized stores selling ration supplies and collection points for collecting folk metal utensils.

The joint sanctions imposed by the United Kingdom, the United States, and the Netherlands (Dutch East Indies) seem to have had a great effect. The channels for importing American scrap steel have been completely cut off, and oil from the United States, the Dutch East Indies, and British Malaya is no longer shipped. Japan, the silk and various shoddy goods produced in Japan also had no international market, and all of them suddenly became slow-selling goods. What makes the Japanese government and businessmen even more stunned is that the East Asian mainland market also quietly closed its door to Japan after the United States announced sanctions against Japan. Moreover, in Manchuria, which is firmly controlled by Japan, large-scale strikes have also occurred these days, and the major iron ore and coal mines are all suspended or semi-suspended - this is obviously the United States and the Soviet Union working together to cause trouble!

There is also a railway starting from Irkutsk and going south through Mongolia, which was also completed and opened to traffic in March 1941. In addition, the Soviet Union's oil field in North Sakhalin also suffered a major accident in April 1941, and production has not resumed until now. According to the treaty reached between Japan and the Soviet Union in the 1920s, the oil produced in this oil field was sold to Japan's.

All signs indicate that the Japanese Empire is facing an unprecedented crisis! The three first-class powers, Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union, are now joining forces to deal with Japan, and have created an almost airtight network to encircle Japan.

Faced with this dangerous situation in which the whole world seemed to be the enemy of Japan, the Japanese Empire responded by accelerating war preparations and strengthening the construction of the army and navy. Heavy industry manufacturers are all operating at full capacity to produce cannons, firearms, ammunition, ships and aircraft, and they have even begun to invest heavily in the production and research and development of combat vehicles.

The large-scale production of weapons and ammunition quickly consumed Japan's limited metals, and consumption soon exceeded production. It had to start using strategic reserves, and at the same time began to search for scrap metal from the private sector to prepare for emergencies.

As for the consumption of oil, it has been restricted to the minimum, almost to the point of disregarding the most basic needs of people's livelihood! Even the gasoline and diesel control measures in European countries that are currently at war are not as strict as Japan's.

It can be said that in order to prepare for war, Japan has staked everything!

However, no matter how strict the control measures are, no matter how much scrap metal is collected from the private sector, there is a limit.

And once the most precious war resource of the Japanese Empire, oil, is used up through indiscriminate consumption, the Japanese Empire's war machine will become a pile of useless scrap metal.

At that time, even if Japan wants to gamble, there will be no possibility of victory.

The car in which Lieutenant General Hideki Tojo, the Minister of War, was driving on the empty road, passed through the deserted urban area, and went to the imperial palace to attend the imperial meeting.

The Army Lieutenant General frowned and his face was livid, but at the same time he looked eager and ready to show off his skills. He knew the deadline of "making a decision to join the war before October and starting a war with Britain and the United States before the end of the year" proposed by Hessmann at the first time. Tojo Hideki was also shocked at first. Regarding the prospect that Germany might negotiate peace with Britain after this deadline and become an ally from Britain's enemy, Tojo's first reaction was that Japan was going to be betrayed.

But when he thought about it, he felt that this "deadline" actually forced Japan into a situation where it could only fight against the odds, and this was not necessarily disadvantageous to Japan. Without the "deadline" given by Hirschman, Konoe Fumimaro, a courageous nobleman, would have been delayed for how long.

At the Army-Navy joint meeting held overnight yesterday, senior naval officials who originally liked to argue with the Army rarely agreed with Tojo, the Army Minister. They all believed that a war must be fought to obtain various resources needed for the development of the Japanese Empire, especially It’s oil resources!

To obtain oil resources, one must go south to capture Malaya and the Dutch East Indies. To move south confidently and boldly, we must go to war with the United States and seize control of the Pacific Ocean. To this end, senior officials of the Japanese army and navy also discussed and formulated an "Outline of Imperial National Policy to Adapt to Changing Situations", which is ready to be adopted at today's imperial meeting to make it the latest national policy.

…

"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, the current situation is that oil can last for 12-18 months at most, and we cannot wait until the last drop of oil is used up to find a solution. There must be an advance amount." Tojo Hideki said this, his eyes He glanced at the empty throne.

Emperor Showa did not attend the meeting today. The person presiding over the meeting was Internal Affairs Minister Kido Koichi. Kido would not express any opinions. In front of the five cabinet ministers, he was just acting as the emperor's follower and mouthpiece.

Since the Emperor was absent, the ministers who attended the meeting all spoke freely. Tojo Hideki touched his bald head and continued: "Now that Britain and Germany are negotiating a secret peace, the international situation is very likely to undergo a huge change that is not conducive to the empire. . So our empire can no longer wait endlessly. There must be a time to make a final decision. I think it is today!"

"Today?" Konoe Fumimaro was startled by the request of Tojo Hideki, a reckless warrior, and quickly turned his eyes to the Minister of the Navy, Koshiro Ikawa.

"Prime Minister, I think it's today." Koshiro Ikawa's words shocked Konoe Fumimaro even more.

"What?" Konoe Fumimaro was stunned again and again. Now the Japanese Army and Navy are actually wearing the same pants. How can this Prime Minister still command the overall situation!

Konoe Fumimaro turned his eyes to Foreign Minister Matsuoka Yosuke. Matsuoka Yosuke was the president of the Manchurian Railway and advocated the "Manchuria and Mongolia Lifeline" theory. However, his way to achieve the "Manchuria and Mongolia Lifeline" was rather strange. He did not rely on Britain and the United States, but allied with Germany and the Soviet Union. He advocated coordinating relations with the Soviet Union through Germany to achieve the goal of dividing the East Asian continent. Therefore, after promoting Japan to join the Tripartite Alliance, he signed the "Japan-Soviet Non-Aggression Treaty" with Stalin. In this treaty, the Soviet Union promised not to enter Manchuria, but refused to promise not to support the "socialist comrades and brothers" on the East Asian continent, so Matsuoka's goal was not achieved.

Later, Matsuoka Yosuke advocated achieving the goal through coordination between the United States and Japan, and personally presided over the negotiations with the United States. However, the Americans obviously put the US-Soviet relationship above the US-Japan relationship. Not only did they resolutely refuse to form an alliance with Japan, but they also began to impose severe sanctions on Japan. At the same time, they began to deploy aircraft and submarines in the Philippines, posing a posture of resolutely containing Japan.

"Prime Minister," said Matsuoka Yosuke, "going south is already an inevitable choice, but my empire should still avoid going to war with the United States."

Matsuoka Yosuke spent a long time in the United States when he was a child, and he knew the strength of the United States very well, so his proposal was to go south to Malaya and Singapore to open up maritime links with Germany. But don't attack the Philippines and don't give the United States an excuse to declare war.

Once Singapore is taken, the Indian Ocean will be opened to establish contact with Germany. Then Japan can get support from Germany and will not be afraid of the United States coming to make trouble.

"That won't do!" Tojo Hideki interrupted Matsuoka Yosuke, "The United States has bases and garrisons in the Philippines and Guam, and has deployed thousands of aircraft. If we don't clear them out, how can we go south with confidence? What if the United States sneak attacks us from behind when we attack the Singapore Fortress?"

"Tojo-kun," Matsuoka Yosuke shook his head repeatedly, "Such a thing will not happen. The United States cannot launch a sneak attack. This is not allowed by their national system."

"But the United States will still join the war!" Navy Minister Koshiro Ikawa frowned and said, "The United States has attacked Mexico and Spain, and took the initiative to participate in the last World War. As long as the American president is willing to fight, there will always be an excuse. As for the isolationism of the United States, it is only for Europe. If we can't gain an advantage over the US Pacific Fleet at the beginning of the war, then as the war continues, we have no hope of winning."

He was not wrong. The United States can always find an excuse. Or blow up a ship, or make a conspiracy for Japan to unite with Mexico to fight the United States, or simply use a Japanese plane to crash into the Empire State Building.

And now the situation in the Pacific is very unfavorable to Japan, because Japan's potential enemy is also the Soviet Union. Considering that the current US-Soviet relationship is getting closer and closer, the possibility of the US-Soviet joint action against Japan always exists.

Therefore, for Japan, the most favorable situation is to gain a huge advantage at the beginning of the war, thereby deterring the Soviet Union and its younger brothers. Let them not dare to have any unrealistic thoughts, and they must continue to provide war resources to Japan obediently.

To achieve such a goal, there is only one way to adopt Yamamoto Isoroku's plan and sneak attack Pearl Harbor, the home port of the US Pacific Fleet!

"So we should strike first!" Tojo Hideki took over the topic and said loudly, "The Army believes that this is the only way out at present! We must strike hard against the United States and Britain at the beginning of the war and achieve a decisive victory. Moreover, the Germans have promised that once we make a decision, they will provide support. Therefore, we should make a decision as soon as possible to get support earlier."

He said "the Army believes" instead of "this officer believes". This shows that the words just now represent the Japanese Army!

Konoe Fumimaro quickly turned his gaze to the Navy Minister, and Ikawa Koshiro nodded and said, "The Navy thinks so too... Therefore, I implore the Prime Minister to support the Outline of the Imperial National Policy Adapting to Changing Situations and immediately determine the national policy of marching south and fighting against the United States!"