Does Japan have allies? The answer is yes, Japan's allies are Germany, Italy, and Thailand. With these allies, why is Japan in such a hurry to find allies?

Because Japan's relations with Germany, Italy, and Thailand are far from being as close as people think, in accordance with the "Outline for Handling the Current Situation in Accordance with the Evolution of the World Situation" formulated and promulgated by Japan, Japan has decided to conclude a trilateral treaty between Japan, Germany, and Italy in order to achieve its strategic attempt of invading China and invading Southeast Asia.

As mentioned above, the trend towards strengthening the Japan-Germany axis can be traced back to the conclusion of the Japan-Germany Defense and Communism Agreement in November of Showa 11 (1936), but this Japan-Germany Defense and Communist Agreement was accompanied by a potential force from the government and the opposition led by the military department and a part of the opposition to it. How to understand this sentence?

In fact, after the signing of the Japan-Germany Defense and Communist Agreement, some people in Japan, led by the Ministry of War, were in favor of deepening relations with Germany and its allies Italy and Spain, and that it would be better to sign an offensive and defensive alliance treaty if possible. But there are still those in Japan who strongly oppose this view, arguing that it will lead Japan into an endless abyss of war, and that the war will likely be fought against the victorious countries of the First World War.

Therefore, in fact, judging from the content of the above-mentioned German-Japanese defense and communist agreement, it is only a political alliance and does not have much binding force on each other, so it is imperative to strengthen relations with Germany and Italy and other countries.

It goes without saying that the main force pushing forward this strengthening of relations with Germany, Italy, Spain, Thailand, and other countries is actually the army. The Army's traditional mission was to consolidate its defenses in the north, so using Germany's strength to contain the Soviet Union was the Army's best hope. In this regard, Japan and Germany both faced the powerful Soviet Union in the eastern and western oceans, and therefore shared a common stake.

After the outbreak of the Lugou Bridge Incident, the need to contain the Soviet Union increased day by day. At the same time, as the war drags on, in order for it to be resolved at an early date, it is necessary to actively strengthen Japan's position in the international arena to deal with the United States and Britain. This is especially true of the Army, which is widely recognized as the protagonist in ending the events in China.

The progress of the war situation in Europe and the rise of the desire to solve the southern problem. This has given a more significant impetus to the trend towards alliances. So. The main target of the Japanese-German alliance shifted from the Soviet Union to the United States.

After the decision of the "Outline for Handling the Current Situation," the responsible authorities of the army and navy repeatedly discussed concrete ways to strengthen political solidarity with Germany and Italy. From the end of August 1939 onwards, the issue was studied in extreme secrecy by the heads of the government and the High Command, centered on Foreign Minister Matsuoka's assumptions. By September. With the visit of the German envoy Stama to Japan. Negotiations with Germany and Italy were quickly concretized.

After all, it's just concretization. There is still a long way to go before a treaty is actually signed. Originally, Japan and Germany were not in a hurry, but with the development of the situation in the world, Japan is in a hurry. Especially when Germany made great war achievements in Europe, Japan was really in a hurry.

At the beginning of the 40s, the top level of the Japanese government convened a four-phase meeting on the issue of strengthening the Japan-Germany-Italy axis, and the four-phase meeting was one of the most important meetings in Japan after the Imperial Joint Conference.

The four-phase meeting discussed the proposal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the "Strengthening of the Japan-Germany-Italy Axis" and decided on the essentials of negotiations with Special Envoy Stama:

1. To affirm that the Imperial State and Germany and Italy share a common position on the construction of a new world order, and that they should support each other in the establishment and governance of their respective spheres of existence; We should cooperate with each other on the policies of Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States, and we should reach the necessary understandings between them.

With regard to the mutual support and cooperation between Japan, Germany, and Italy with regard to the China incident and the war in Europe, which are facing each other, it is necessary to quickly reach the necessary understandings while understanding the above-mentioned basic spirit.

The above-mentioned two negotiations should be conducted in accordance with the following basic conditions for strengthening cooperation between Japan, Germany, and Italy.

In accordance with the above-mentioned decision, the same Special Envoy of Matsuoka held two days of talks and agreed on the following points.

1. Japan, Germany, and Italy hope that the United States will not participate in the war in Europe and the dispute between Japan and China.

2. Germany did not ask Japan to intervene in its war against Britain.

3. Only a resolute and unanimous attitude of Japan, Germany, and Italy can restrain the actions of the United States.

4. The next step in the Treaty of the Three Kingdoms was to involve the participation of the Soviet Union, and Germany to mediate cooperation between Japan and the Soviet Union.

5. Germany is doing its utmost to avoid a conflict between Japan and the United States in East Asia.

In this way, negotiations with Germany and Italy were quickly concretized, and on April 16 a meeting of the provisional cabinet was convened, and on the 19th the Imperial Council was convened, and the decision of the Supreme Council on the conclusion of a treaty was adopted.

This was followed by a meeting of the Imperial Council, which was attended by Prime Minister Konoe, Minister of Riku Itagaki, Minister of Fortune and Minister of Maritime Affairs of Kawasaki, Minister of Foreign Affairs Matsuoka, Minister of Zozo Kawada, President of the Hoshino Planning Institute, former Speaker of the Privy Council, Chief of Staff of the Kanin Palace, Chief of the Military Command Department of Fushimi Palace, Deputy Chief of Staff Sawada, and Deputy Chief of the Military Command Department of Kondo.

After the Imperial Council, the trilateral treaty between Japan, Germany, and Italy was finally signed in Berlin at 8:15 p.m. the next day (17th) after the Emperor's consultation with the Privy Council on May 16. At 9:15 p.m. that night, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the treaty had been signed.

The full text of the treaty reads as follows: "The Governments of the Imperial Japan, the Governments of Germany, and Italy consider that the giving of each of the nations of the world is a prerequisite for lasting peace. Therefore, it is essential to build and maintain a new order in Greater East Asia and Europe that will truly enable all regions and nations to coexist and prosper. In accordance with the above-mentioned objectives, the Governments of the three countries are determined to work together and cooperate with each other in the above-mentioned regions, and are determined to provide assistance to all countries in the world community that intend to make similar efforts, with a view to realizing the ultimate aspirations of the three countries for world peace. Accordingly, the Government of Japan, the Government of Germany and the Government of Italy agree as follows:

Article 1: Japan recognizes and respects the leadership of Germany and Italy in building a new order in Europe.

Article 2: Germany and Italy recognize and respect Japan's leadership in building a new order in Greater East Asia.

Article 3: Japan, Germany, and Italy agree to cooperate with each other in their efforts to follow the above guidelines. It was further agreed that in the event that any of the three Contracting Parties was attacked by a State that was not yet a participant in the war in Europe or in the Sino-Japanese dispute, the three States were to assist each other by all political, economic, and military means.

Article 4: For the implementation of this Treaty, a mixed special committee composed of members appointed by the Government of Japan, the Government of Germany and the Government of Italy shall be convened without delay.

In Article 5, the States of Japan, Germany and Italy confirm that the above-mentioned articles have no effect whatsoever on the existing political situation between the three States parties and the Soviet Union.

Article 6: This Treaty shall come into force on the date of signature. It is valid for 10 years from the date of implementation. The Contracting States shall consult on the renewal of this Treaty at the request of any of the Contracting States at the appropriate period prior to the expiration of such validity.

At the same time that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the signing of the trilateral treaty, the emperor issued an edict and the government issued a government decree in the name of Prime Minister Konoe. The edict stated that the Troika Treaty was signed in accordance with the Emperor's earnest desire to quickly put an end to the troubles and restore peace. The government directive emphasized that the purpose of the treaty was to build a new order in Greater East Asia and restore peace to the world.

On the morning of June 18, 1940, Prime Minister Konoe made a speech to the people on the radio about the current situation. In his speech, Fumima Konoe repeatedly explained the issue of the trilateral treaty: "If you look at the current situation in East Asia and Europe, it is not difficult for a discerning person to see that Japan, Germany, and Italy are indeed working together to open up the old order within their respective jurisdictions. That is, Germany and Italy are seeking to build a new order in Europe, and Japan is determined to build a new order in Greater East Asia in accordance with the original appearance of Asia. ”

"At the present stage of the history of the world, it is not yet possible to expect to immediately organize the world into a unity, so it is an inevitable trend for the various ethnic groups in the world to form several circles of coexistence and co-prosperity. Japan in East Asia, Germany and Italy in Europe should occupy the position of leading this sphere of coexistence and co-prosperity, which is an inevitable trend from a historical, geographical, and economic point of view. I believe that it was precisely because of attempts to stop this inevitable trend that the Second World War broke out in Europe, and in East Asia there was a tension in international relations in a quasi-wartime manner. “

"If this is the case, then it is also an inevitable trend for Japan to assist Germany and Italy, and Germany and Italy to assist Japan and help each other, so that the power of military alliances will be brought into play according to the situation."

In fact, the signing of the treaty between the three countries is very closely related to the current situation in time. If Chen Feng's troops had not started a war with the Soviet Union in Mongolia, Germany would not have figured out the reality of the Soviets so quickly, the Japanese would not have thought that the opportunity had come, and it would not have been possible for Germany and Japan to reach an agreement so quickly.

In fact, this is the ultimate goal of Chen Feng's work in the past six months, if we follow the original trend of history, it will take nearly half a year for Germany, Italy and Japan to sign an alliance treaty. And it will take two full years for the outbreak of the entire World War II, Chen Feng can't wait, you must know that the responsibility he shoulders is not light, and the apprentices of more than 4 million square kilometers need him to recover, this is an extremely big project, if the original historical process is followed, I am afraid that he will not be able to complete this task after the end of World War II.

If you can't complete the task, you have to take responsibility, but Chen Feng can't bear this responsibility, and Chen Feng doesn't want to bear the result of being wiped out by the system. If it was two years ago, all the thoughts in Chen Feng's heart were for the country and the people, and his thoughts were noble like a saint.

At that time, he worked hard to do everything, and he didn't have much psychological burden. But now it's different, he, Chen, is no longer the eldest young master Chen when he first came, he is not careless in this era, he already has 4 beautiful girls who are like flowers and jade, and he will soon have his own children, he can't give up these.

The more this is the case, the stronger Chen Feng's belief in completing the task and staying in this era will be, so he will spare no effort to promote the development of the situation in the world. Despite the danger, it now seems that his plan is half the battle. (To be continued......)