'The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 was necessary.' How far do you agree? Explain your answer.

There were many compelling reasons for the Japanese to attack Pearl Harbor. Firstly, the Japanese needed resources to sustain their war efforts in China. As the Americans had collaborated with the British and the Dutch to place an embargo on the sale of oil to Japan in 1940, Japan would suffer from a lack of fuel and thus, unable to continue the war in China. As such, Japan needed to take over Southeast Asia for resources, including the Philippines, which was colonised by the US. Since an attack on the Philippines would lead to US reinforcements from Pearl Harbor, Japan found it necessary to strike at Pearl Harbor first. In addition, Japan was always preparing for a showdown with the West in order to prove that Japan was not inferior to them. This would mean that a war with the West, which included the US, would be necessary. Japan's desire to build an empire also made the attack on Pearl Harbor necessary. The destruction of the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbot was seen as a critical step to ensure Japan's dominance of the Pacific region. If the Pacific Fleet was destroyed, the Japanese believed that US confidence would be severely affected. At the same time, the US would need a long time to rebuild their strength before they would confront the Japanese. By then, Japan would have secured the areas it needed.

The attack was unnecessary because Japan was already having difficulty winning the war against China. To fight the US at a same time would stretch Japanese resources even further. The US was actually in a state of isolationism prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor. Therefore, Japan could have continued to negotiate with the US regarding the embargo. By attacking Pearl Harbor, Japan merely forced themselves to fight a very powerful and determined country. In the long term, Japan would not be able to win such a conflict.