Why Did Japanese Attack On Pearl Harbor

On December 7, 1941 the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the United States Naval Base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. A series of important events led up to the bombing for Pearl Harbor. Tensions between the United States and Japan had been building for a time. The Philippine islands, at that time an American territory, were a Japanese target. Believing an invasion of the Philippines would invoke American hostilities, the Japanese decided that rather than seize and fortify the islands and wait for the American counterattack, the Japanese military would attack Pearl Harbor. This, they believed, would remove the American forces needed for the reconquest of the islands and thus prevent the U.S. Pacific Fleet from interfering with future military

Wanting to be able to stand their ground against Western powers, Japan began to expand their influence so to exploit resources and establish a sphere of influence in East Asia. In 1894, Japan defeated China in the First Sino-Japanese War. Up until then Korea had been a tributary of China. Japan, however, saw the economic and industrial benefits of the peninsula. Following the Tonghak peasant rebellion, Japan occupied the capitol of Seoul and replaced the existing government with a pro-Japanese faction. This new government was rejected as illegitimate by the Chinese and war over Korea followed. The war ended with the Treaty of Shimonoseki. recognized the independence of Korea; control of Taiwan, the Penghu Islands, and the Liaodong Peninsula were ceded to Japan; China would open several treaty ports for Japanese use; and 200 million taels would be paid in indemnity. Alarmed by Japan’s growing influence, however, Russia convinced Germany and France that Japan’s ownership of the Liaodong peninsula was a threat to European interest. Together the three powers pressured Japan into giving up control of the peninsula for 30 million taels, which the Russian’s helped China pay

The Hull Note was the American counter offer, which required Japan to leave China without conditions and sign a non-aggression pact c. However the day before the Hull Note was delivered, on November 26 in Japan, the main Japanese attack fleet left port for Pearl Harbor.

Planning for the attack on Pearl Harbor had begun in very early 1941, by Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. The attack was approved in the summer at an Imperial Conference. Over the course of the year, pilots were trained and ships prepared for its execution. Authority for the attack was granted if a diplomatic result satisfactory to Japan was not reached between Japanese and American forces. The order to attack was issued at the beginning of December.

Unbeknownst to the Japanese, American forces had cracked the Japanese naval code and were able to read Japanese secret messages. However, due to various reasons, some information was never followed up on and certain parts of the puzzle were missed. The United States knew that if negotiations fell through that the Japanese were going to attack. However some information collected by the U.S. Army was never shared with the Navy and vice versa. Washington also would neglect giving out certain data so to avoid duplicating messages. So while American forces knew Japan was going to attack, they were