Research Project Notes (World War II in the Pacific)• “Japanese expansion into East Asia began in 1931 with the invasion of Manchuria and continued in 1937 with a brutal attack on China. . On September 27, 1940, Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy, thereby entering the military alliance known as "the Axis" (Holocaust Encyclopedia 1). Also won “from the Philippines to Burma, via the Aleutians and the Solomon Islands” (Pacific Theater 1). • “Seeking to curb Japanese aggression and withdraw Japanese forces from Manchuria and China, the United States imposed economic sanctions on Japan. Faced with severe shortages of oil and other natural resources and motivated by ambition to supplant the United States as the dominant power in the Pacific, Japan decided to attack American and British forces in Asia and s 'seize the resources of Southeast Asia' (Holocaust Encyclopedia 1).• Pearl Harbor: The Japanese carried out a surprise attack on the United States on December 7, 1941, which damaged the American naval fleet. The United States declared war on Japan and Germany declared war on the United States, and the United States subsequently declared war on Germany.• After Pearl Harbor, Japan had a highly successful military campaign, they acquired Guam and Wake Island in December 1941, Hong Kong, Burma Malaysia, Singapore and the Dutch East Indies in 1942. • “It was not until mid-1942 that Australian and neo- "Zealand troops were in New Guinea and British forces in India were able to stop the Japanese advance" (Holocaust Encyclopedia 1). . The Japanese had to protect a very vast territory with their army. MacArthur also at the same time middle of paper...... people died in the initial explosion, and many more died later from radiation exposure. Three days later, the United States dropped a bomb on the Japanese city of Nagasaki. Around 120,000 civilians died as a result of the two explosions. On August 8, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan and invaded Japanese-occupied Manchuria. After Japan agreed to surrender on August 14, 1945, American forces began occupying Japan. Japan formally surrendered to the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union on September 2, 1945." (Holocaust Encyclopedia 1). Bibliography "Major Battles of the Pacific." PBS. PBS and Web. December 4, 2013. “The Pacific Theater”. Pacific Theater. Interesting.com, nd Web. December 4, 2013. “World War II in the Pacific.” » Holocaust Encyclopedia. Washington DC: Holocaust Memorial Museum, 2013. Print.