Time Slip Reiwa Japan

066 - Manchurian Incident - 5

The fact that the United States transitioned into a state of heightened readiness, both politically and militarily, has instilled fear in China. The Chinese government, aware of the disparity in national strength between the two countries, considered confrontation with the United States based on public opinion, but it did not desire an all-out conflict or war. At the very least, they had no intention of engaging in war until the weapons and ammunition they had ordered from Germany arrived. Therefore, they hurriedly shifted their stance towards reconciliation. They also sought to appeal to international public opinion for peace. They proposed efforts for the peaceful resolution of issues in northern China at the International League. Furthermore, they made strong efforts to maintain trade relations with Britain and France, who have interests in the South China region.

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United States

The United States understood that China's pursuit of peace was a preparation for a defensive attack, which dampened their war spirit. However, they also recognized that the domestic public opinion in China favored a tough stance against the United States, making it unlikely that China would yield until the end. Therefore, alongside engaging in peace negotiations with China, the United States decided to continue preparing for their ongoing war plans. They adopted a stance of both peace and war.

In addition to the three countries they had previously contacted, they planned a large-scale exercise in Manchuria involving seven countries, including Japan and the Republic of Korea. *1 This exercise had the aspect of intimidating the hearts of the Chinese people. The location chosen for the exercise was a different area from the bulge that pushed the border into Chinese territory—the frontier between the Frontier Republic and China.

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China

China took an active approach toward peace negotiations. One major point of contention between China and the United States was the exclusion of American citizens within China. The Chinese government found it difficult to halt the growing movement among the public to exclude Americans. From the Chinese perspective, the anti-American sentiment among Chinese citizens was a result of how Chinese people were treated in the Frontier Republic. They argued that it would be challenging for China to accept such treatment. However, the United States refused to accept this reasoning. They stated that the treatment of Chinese people in the Frontier Republic was carried out for the purpose of maintaining law and order.

In response, China proposed a ban on mutual exclusion activities, but the United States also rejected this proposition. The United States countered that it was unfair to equate China, which was clearly implementing exclusion movements against Americans, with the Frontier Republic, where no such policy was in place. At this point, China realized something. The United States had no intention of engaging in negotiations. If China wanted to pursue non-conflict, the United States demanded that China fully comply with their demands. China became fearful.

During these negotiations, the large-scale exercise in Manchuria, involving the media from various countries, was taking place. China understood that it was under significant pressure, witnessing the presence of nearly 1.000 tanks/AFVs and around 1.500 field guns. Considering the remaining forces within the Frontier Republic and the units defending the bulge into Chinese territory, the total number exceeded 200.000.

When the Chinese government inquired with the Chinese military command about the possibility of countering the US military, the response was that with the current military strength, it would be impossible to defend the northern bank of the Yellow River, including Beijing, in the predominantly flat Hebei Province. China then suggested the possibility of drawing the conflict into the Jiangnan region, south of the Yangtze River. However, the response was that under China's current international relations, there was no prospect of success due to a lack of support.