China

Japanese aggression

In September 1931 a group of officers in the Kwantung Army set in motion a plot (beginning with the Mukden Incident) to compel the Japanese government to extend its power in Manchuria. The Japanese government was drawn step by step into the conquest of Manchuria and the creation of a regime known as Manchukuo. China was unable to prevent Japan from seizing this vital area. In 1934, after long negotiations, Japan acquired the Soviet interest in the Chinese Eastern Railway, thus eliminating the last legal trace of the Soviet sphere of influence there. During 1932–35 Japan seized more territory bordering on Manchuria. In 1935 it attempted to detach Hebei and the Chahar region of Inner Mongolia from Nanjing’s control and threatened Shanxi, Shandong, and the Suiyuan region of Inner Mongolia. The National Government’s policy was to trade space for time in which to build military power and unify the country. Its slogan “Unity before resistance” was directed principally against the Chinese communists.