What did Japan need to support its growing population and build an empire in the 1930s?

1 Answer
Jan 16, 2017

Japan needed abundant natural resources to support both its population and its empire, something that the country lacked.

Explanation:

As a smaller island nation with not a whole lot of flat land for farming, Japan has always been at a disadvantage when it comes to natural resources. This applied doubly so for the important resources of the 20th century, such as oil (for fuel), metal, and plentiful amounts of food. Obtaining these resources through importing -- and later, during WW2, through conquest -- became especially important in order to sustain both Japan's population and empire.