Japan's entry into the Second World War was a continuation of a decade of conflict, beginning with the annexation of Manchuria and war with China. In response, the United States and the United Kingdom removed access to the resources Japan needed to maintain the war. Faced with industrial collapse, the Japanese government was under no illusion about the audacity of its plans: the country would take the resources it was being denied. With Britain isolated in Europe, and if the United States Pacific fleet could be neutralized, it was possible that a speedy campaign of expansion would secure sufficient territory and resources to make Japan self-reliant and unassailable. It was a colossal gamble that needed to achieve a big, early win in order to have any hope of success.
The initial successes were startling. The Japanese developed infiltration tactics, using the dense jungle terrain as a safe route by which to move unobserved before blocking key arterial
