Chapter 485 Hideki Tojo

Although it is a hot summer day, the sunshine that spreads over the streets of Tokyo is still a little cold to people who are familiar with this big city.

In this largest international metropolis in the Far East, the asphalt roads are empty, and no cars are seen speeding by. The shops on both sides of the road should be filled with all kinds of goods, but now most of them have empty containers. There is nothing to sell and no customers. Only in front of a few specialized stores selling rationed materials and collection points for collecting folk metal utensils will there be long queues.

The joint sanctions of Britain, the United States, and the Netherlands (Dutch East Indies) seem to have played a big role. The channels for importing scrap steel from the United States have been completely cut off, and oil from the United States, the Dutch East Indies, and British Malaya are no longer shipped to Japan. The silk and various shoddy goods produced in Japan have no international market and have all become unsalable. What surprised the Japanese government and businessmen even more was that the market in the East Asian continent also quietly closed its doors to Japan after the United States announced sanctions against Japan. Moreover, in Manchuria, which was firmly controlled by Japan, a large-scale strike has also occurred these days, and the main iron and coal mines are all in a state of suspension or semi-suspension - this is obviously the United States and the Soviet Union working together to make trouble!

And there is also a railway from Irkutsk through Mongolia to the south, which was completed and opened to traffic in March 1941. In addition, the Soviet oil field in North Sakhalin Island 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 by this oil field is sold to Japan.

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

Faced with this sinister situation where it seems that the whole world is against Japan, the response of the Japanese Empire is to speed up preparations for war and strengthen the construction of the army and navy. All heavy industrial manufacturers are working at full capacity to produce cannons, guns, ammunition, ships and aircraft, and even began to invest heavily in the production and research and development of tanks.

The large-scale production of weapons and ammunition quickly consumed Japan's limited metals, and consumption soon exceeded production. Japan had to start using strategic reserves and began to plunder the scrap metal in the civilian population for emergency use.

As for oil consumption, it was restricted to the lowest limit, almost to the point of ignoring the most basic needs of the people! Even the gasoline and diesel control measures in European countries that are now in war are not as strict as Japan's.

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

However, no matter how strict the control measures are, no matter how much the scrap metal is plundered from the civilian population, there is a limit.

Once the most precious war resource of the Japanese Empire, oil, is exhausted in the consumption of no income, the war machine of the Japanese Empire will become a pile of useless scrap metal.

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

The car driven by Army Minister Lieutenant General Hideki Tojo drove on the empty road, passing through the deserted city, to the Imperial Palace to attend the Imperial Conference.

The lieutenant general frowned, his face was ashen, but at the same time he looked eager to try and show his skills. He knew the deadline proposed by Hessman, "make a decision to join the war before October, and go to war with Britain and the United States before the end of the year", at the first time. At first, Hideki Tojo was also shocked. Regarding the prospect that Germany might negotiate peace with Britain after this deadline and become an ally from Britain's enemy, Hideki Tojo's first reaction was that Japan was going to be betrayed.

But he thought about it and felt that this "deadline" actually forced Japan into a situation where it could only fight with its back to the wall, which might not be disadvantageous to Japan. If there was no "deadline" given by Hessman, it is unknown how long the cowardly noble lord Fumimaro Konoe would have delayed.

At the joint meeting of the army and navy held overnight yesterday, the senior naval officers who originally liked to argue with the army rarely agreed with Tojo, the army minister, and believed that they must fight at all costs to obtain various resources needed for the development of the Japanese Empire, especially oil resources!

To obtain oil resources, they must go south to seize Malaya and the Dutch East Indies. To go south boldly, they must go to war with the United States and seize 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 passed at today's Imperial Conference to make it the latest national policy.

…

"Mr. Prime Minister, the current situation is that oil can only support 12-18 months at most, and we can't wait until the last drop of oil is used up before trying to solve it. We must have an advance amount." Tojo Hideki said this, and glanced at the empty throne.

Today, Emperor Showa did not attend the meeting. The one who presided over the meeting was Minister of the Interior Koichi Kido. Kido would not express any opinions. In front of the five cabinet ministers, he was just playing the role of the emperor's follower and mouthpiece.

Since the Emperor was not present, the ministers attending the meeting spoke freely. Tojo Hideki touched his big bald head and continued, "Now that Britain and Germany are secretly negotiating peace, the international situation is very likely to undergo a huge change that is unfavorable to the Empire. Therefore, my Empire can no longer wait endlessly. There must be a time to make a final decision. I think it's 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 Manchuria 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 ally 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 connected 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!"