The end of the Soviet-Japanese War also marked the birth of a new regime. The Soviet Union's international standing plummeted in inverse proportion to Japan's growing national prestige. This had repercussions for the rest of the world.
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Japan
The newly established Republic of Kuril expanded to include the northern part of Sakhalin and was renamed the Republic of Okhotsk. The development of the Okha oil fields, funded by Japanese ODA, made the country the richest in the Federation. *1
In addition, the military was reorganized based on the lessons of war. The problem was that the size of the SDF was too small for the size of the Japanese Federation to defend. There was also a serious shortage of armored vehicles such as tanks. It was recognized that no matter how superior the current equipment was, it would not change anything if there were too few of them. It was a relief that the number of applicants for the SDF was on the rise in the aftermath of the economic turmoil caused by the time slip.
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United States of America
As a result of the Soviet-Japanese War, they increased their economic activity in Kwantung and Manchuria where the Soviet pressure had disappeared. As far as food was concerned, there was no problem no matter how much food was produced because Japan would buy it almost indefinitely as long as the price was reasonable. The Japanese would become an active investment destination for the flood of American gold. In the meantime, Japanese trucks and farming equipment were being sold. This is due to the discovery and report by an officer visiting Japan as a military observer.
Due to the difference in prices (economic power) between the US and Japan, Japanese-made cultivating machines were insanely expensive, but at the same time, their capabilities were far superior to those of American machines. In addition, not only in agriculture, but also in civil engineering, Japanese-made machines became a status symbol due to their low failure rate as well as their performance. However, because of their status, they were often targeted and became a major source of concern for the US.
During the development and exploration of Manchuria, they discovered an oil field. It was confirmed to Japan via the USFJ and turned out to be a large oil field that was later named the Daqing Oil Field. With this discovery, the US strengthened its expansion into China.
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China
The development of Manchuria by the United States and the profits it made were eye-opening. Oil was especially important. Until then, the US had not paid much attention to Manchuria, but the demand to return Manchuria and Kwantung began to grow as the US increased its investment in both regions. However, the US side did not pay any attention to it, and it became a feud between China and the US.
. . .
Soviet Union
The Soviet-Japanese War left the Soviet Union with an enormous amount of reparations to pay. However, the Soviet Union, which had just been established and was still a weak country, could not easily repay the debt, and it became a difficult task. Therefore, as a proposal, Japan proposed to them to sell the mining rights in Siberia as part of the repayment. Instead of a lease, Japan would create the Siberian Resources Development Corporation as a national policy enterprise and sell the resources through it.
The Soviet Union agreed to this proposal. Japan promised to invest in the infrastructure development that would accompany the resource development, and they dreamed that the Siberian development project, which was lagging behind, would move forward. However, since the mines sold in this project were all in places where high profits could be expected, it became a headache for the Soviet Union.
The Soviets also did not understand that the organization would lead the infrastructure development in Siberia, where the logistical network had been completely destroyed on land and sea, was not a national organization, and that it would employ local residents. Instead, the Soviet Union, and Stalin, would focus on domestic power struggles with the profits from Japan's economic activities in Siberia.
. . .
France
Based on the reports from the military observers, France began to build up its war preparations based on the premise of war against Germany. The emphasis was on maneuver warfare, and at the same time, field artillery. The lessons of the Sakhalin Front reaffirmed the importance of preliminary bombardment. However, as France had not completely recovered from the damage of the World War, there was not much it could do.
Therefore, France decided that it was vital to strike first when Germany tried to rebuild its military. It was hoped that a preemptive strike would take over Germany's western industrial areas, such as the Ruhr, and thereby cripple Germany's ability to wage war.
In order to do so, they were aware of the need for mechanically reliable tanks, armored infantry vehicles, mechanized artillery, logistics, and many other things. However, France did not have the economic power to update everything. Therefore, France focused on tanks and infantry armored vehicles, while artillery was to be replaced by aircraft. In the end, the plan was put together as the Éclair Plan. *2
. . .
Britain
Based on the information brought back by the military observers about Japan—not the SDF, but the nation, it was decided that it was important to cultivate national strength, and efforts were made to modernize industrial products (futurization) as well as invest in infrastructure from Japan. This included not only the simple renewal of facilities but also the reform of the school system. It was also an effort to prevent repeating the decline of the 1950s and onward, information about the future was obtained through exchange with the British Embassy in Japan. In a sense, of all the powers involved in Japan, Britain was the one that looked to the future and feared it the most.
. . .
Poland
The Soviet Union's decline in power meant that it was now secure in the Polish hinterland, and so it moved to expand its military power and deepen its pressure on Germany. This included strengthening the cooperative relationship with France, which continued its hostile policy toward Germany.
. . .
Germany
The economic turmoil and the pincer attack by France and Poland gave strength to the Nazi party. In order to stimulate economic activity, economic relations with the Soviet Union were deepened. This culminated in the Second Treaty of Rapallo, in which Germany became involved in the Soviet Union's five-year plan for the expansion of its national power.
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Notes
*1: Siberia—Soviet territory on the Eurasian continent entered a period of winter, with economic activity stagnant due to infrastructure destroyed in the Soviet-Japanese War. In addition, as a result of the complete defeat of the Soviet Union in the war, the Soviet Union devoted itself to building up its military power, and the vitality of its civilian population declined further. This was a distant cause of the many defections from the Soviet Union to the Republic of Okhotsk.
*2: Since the Éclair Plan was an extremely aggressive plan that aimed at a preemptive attack on Germany and a guaranteed occupation, the French government was extremely afraid that information about it would get out of the country. In addition, the French government requested the sale of tanks and armored vehicles used by the SDF, but Japan refused. Therefore, the next best thing was to ask for cooperation in the development of such vehicles, but Japan did not easily agree to this either. The French government, which had been kind enough to provide technical cooperation to Japan in the past, requested the cooperation.
Japan, on the other hand, had its own security concerns, but more importantly, it feared that easy technical cooperation would hinder France's ability to develop its own technology, which in turn would hinder the healthy development of the world. The negotiations between Japan and France were difficult, and then Britain intervened.
Involving the United States, which had a close relationship with Japan, it called for a mutual agreement on the use of Japan's advanced technology. On top of that, it also involved the League of Nations. It proposed that Japan, Britain, and France, which are permanent members of the League of Nations, form a Security Council with the US as an observer, and create a system to deter the spread of technology and war. On the surface.
In reality, the intention was to use the negotiations with France and the relationship between the US and Japan to bring Japan out of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, which had reduced to a mere vestigial, and into a system that would maintain the British Empire. Although it was a desperate move to involve France and the US, the intelligence agencies believe that France was mainly interested only in continental Europe, while the US was absorbed in China and showed no interest, so there would be no major impact on the operation of Britain's global empire.
On top of that, there was Japan. Although Japan's true nature was difficult to read, Britain understood from their interactions with the British Embassy in Japan that Japan was not a country that would turn its ambitions outward as long as the Japanese mainland remained secure and its economic activities were smooth. If so, it was decided, why not?
Later, it developed into the defense agreement known as the G4. The powers that could not participate in this agreement became increasingly opposed to it.