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Military history of the
Philippines during World War II
In September of 1940,
Germany, Italy, and Japan had allied under the Tripartite
Pact. In July of 1940, the US banned the shipment of
aviation gasoline, to Japan, and by 1941, shipments of scrap
iron, steel, gasoline, and other materials had practically
ceased. Meanwhile, American economic support to China began
to increase.
In April of 1941, Japan and
the USSR signed a neutrality pact and Japan increased
pressure on the French and Dutch colonies, in Southeast
Asia, to cooperate in economic matters. On July 22, 1941,
Japanese forces occupied the naval and air bases of southern
Indochina. The Philippines were almost completely
surrounded.
US Army Chief of Staff
General George C. Marshall states, "Adequate reinforcements
for the Philippines, at this time, would have left the
United States in a position of great peril, should there be
a break in the defense of Great Britain."
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