Japaneseexpansion in East Asiabeganin 1931 with the invasion of Manchuria and continued in 1937 with a brutal attack on China. On September 27, 1940,Japansigned the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy, thus entering the military alliance known as the "Axis." ... In response, the United States declaredwaronJapanand also



WORLD WAR II IN THE PACIFIC

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, was the impetus for the United States’ entrance into World War II.

KEY FACTS

1

The United States declared war on Japan the following day, December 8. On December 11, Nazi Germany, Japan’s Axis ally, declared war on the United States. This forced the United States to enter a two-front war.

2

In the first months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan had great military success. A turning point came in June 1942 at the Battle of Midway. It was the first time that Allied forces were able to make headway in the Pacific.

3

In August 1945, the United States dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. As a result, approximately 120,000 civilians died. Japan formally surrendered in September 1945.

Japaneseexpansion in East Asia began in 1931 with the invasion of Manchuria and continued in 1937 with a brutal attack on China. ...Japanlaunched a surprise attack on the United StatesPacificfleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941.