Chapter 1060 There Are No Permanent Friends
On the morning of the second day after the Soviet Pacific Fleet broke out of the island chain of the Northern Kuril Islands, the Five Ministers' Imperial Conference was held in the Prime Minister's residence. Although the Five Ministers' Imperial Conference is the highest-level meeting of Japan's national policy, as today, not only Tojo Hideki (Prime Minister and Minister of War), Yamamoto Isoroku (Maritime Minister), Shigemitsu Aoki (Foreign Minister) and Kaya Okinori (Finance Minister) are all present, but even Prince Kan'in Yasuhito and Prince Fushimi Hiroyoshi, the two "myth spreaders", as well as former Prime Ministers Konoe Fumimaro, Yonai Mitsumasa, Abe Nobuyuki, Hiranuma Kiichiro, Hirota Koki and Okada Keisuke, all came to attend the meeting in the name of important ministers, which is rare. In addition, Sugiyama Hajime, Chief of the Army General Staff, Nagano Osami, Chief of the Navy General Staff, and Yamada Otozo, Director of Army Education, also appeared at the meeting.
This shows that today's Five Ministers' Imperial Conference is to discuss the fundamental national policy of the Japanese Empire! Therefore, it is necessary to listen to the advice of these important officials who have the right to report to the emperor. In addition to the former prime minister and the two princes, the chief of the army general staff, the chief of the navy and the director of the army education also have the right to report to the emperor.
Hideki Tojo sat on his honorable prime minister's seat, his eyes were a little dazed, and he suddenly felt powerless. As a prime minister who led Japan into a world war and seemed to have won, Tojo himself did not have outstanding wisdom, and was even a little stupid. The reason why he was able to succeed was entirely because he had the courage to jump off the platform of Kiyomizu Temple with his eyes closed. As a result, he took advantage of the Germans and created a world empire with millions of square kilometers in a muddle!
But when Tojo's dream victory came, he found that the Japanese Empire was unprecedentedly isolated. The Germans were not Japan's real friends. They were just using Japan as cannon fodder. Tojo knew this a long time ago, and he was also using Germany to achieve Japan's hegemony. However, he did not expect that the alliance between Japan and Germany would take a sharp turn for the worse when victory was about to come.
In Tojo's view, the reason for this situation was not Japan's fault, but the "European Community-United States of Europe route" pursued by Germany.
According to the analysis of European scholars such as Shigemitsu Mamoru and Matsuoka Yosuke, the essence of this route is actually to turn enemies into friends in Europe.
On the one hand, the Pan-Germanic and Pan-Aryan routes were used to unite those countries in Western Europe and Northern Europe that had blood ties with Germany; on the other hand, the Russians were eager to integrate into Europe, supporting the Romanov dynasty and luring Russia to join the European Community.
The implementation of such a route made Germany and Japan lose their common interests - because the basis for Germany's leadership of the world was no longer the alliance with Japan and Rome, but the European Community and the United States of Europe!
As long as Germany could unite Britain, France and Russia, no matter the United States, Rome or Greater Japan, they would be unable to challenge Germany's hegemony.
Moreover, if Germany wanted to unite Britain, France and Russia, it must safeguard the interests of Britain, France and Russia to a certain extent! The proposed United States of Europe and the already formed European Community are, in a sense, also the heirs of the assets of the three intercontinental empires of Britain, France and Russia.
So Germany's position has changed from dividing the assets of Britain, France and Russia together with Japan and Italy to wanting to legitimately inherit the assets of Britain, France and Russia - since you can take it all by yourself, why share it with others? Even if the Germans don't care much, the British, French and Russians are not happy. And now Germany has to coax the British, French and Russians to vote in favor of the United States of Europe, and also pull them together to blackmail the Americans' money, so of course it has to sit on the side of Britain, France and Russia.
As for Japan... seeing the prospect of the merger of Germany, France, Britain and Russia, are you really not afraid at all? Do you really want to see the unification of Germany, France, Britain and Russia?
This is of course impossible!
Ishihara Kanji's theory of "Mongolia, Southern Song and the Great Jin Dynasty" still makes sense! Even if Germany can treat Japan sincerely now, reasonably distribute the assets of Britain, France and Russia, and provide enough assistance at the same time. For the sake of world balance after the war, Japan must also keep the United States as its "gold" to contain the United States of Europe as its "Mongolia".
Unless Germany is willing to give up the unified line of inheriting the "European Community-United States of Europe" while providing solid assistance to Japan.
But this is also impossible!
Therefore, the alliance between Japan and Germany has actually ended. Now all Japan can do is to strive for a post-war situation that is most favorable to itself while maintaining the fact that Japan and Germany do not turn against each other.
And a post-war situation that is most favorable to Japan is undoubtedly to maintain the strategic confrontation between the United States and Europe...
Although Tojo Hideki was ridiculed as a private by some people, he still has this political wisdom.
At this time, a chaotic sound of footsteps came from the wooden floor of the corridor, and then the Minister of the Interior, Yukichi Kido, came in with two secretaries of the Imperial Household Ministry. He represented the emperor to attend and preside over the Imperial Conference-the Imperial Conference should theoretically be held in front of the emperor, but in fact the emperor rarely comes out directly. Because the emperor is a god! Although Japan since the Meiji Restoration appears to be a somewhat Westernized European country on the surface, in fact, Japan is a **** theocracy.
The emperor is a god! And if you die fighting for the emperor, you can become a god after death! This is the spirit of the atomic bomb that supported millions of Japanese soldiers to move forward bravely in this war. With the expansion of the Japanese Empire, the emperor's power has also increased. Naturally, he cannot be admired casually. This is also for the sake of the ministers. The emperor is a descendant of Amaterasu, which is about the same as a high-power searchlight. He cannot be looked at directly. Otherwise, they will be blinded, and all the dignitary ministers will be blinded by Emperor Showa. How is this decent?
"I have been entrusted by Your Majesty to preside over a meeting of important ministers. If you have suggestions, please feel free to speak out. I will report the matter to your Majesty for your reference."
After Kido Koichi finished speaking, he sat down in his seat. With an inscrutable gaze that he had practiced for many years, he glanced at the ministers and important ministers present over and over again, waiting for them one by one. speak.
"Your Excellency, Interior Minister," Prime Minister Tojo tapped the table lightly and spoke first: "Today, our empire's strategic goals in the Pacific and Southeast Asia have been basically achieved. To the west of the Hawaiian Islands, to the east of the Strait of Malacca, and to the east of Australia The north is the inner lake of the imperial state. Emperor Meiji's dream of spreading the country's prestige to the world has been realized. Therefore, the future development of the imperial state should turn to the mainland. The current primary goal is to capture the Soviet Far East in the north to form an absolute defense in the northwest of the imperial state. lock up……"
Tojo talked eloquently, Kido said nothing, and the two secretaries beside him were immersed in taking notes. Kido's task is to act as a Bodhisattva on behalf of the Emperor, and at the same time bring back the results of the imperial meeting to the Emperor.
"Prime Minister." Mitsumasa Yoneuchi, a former prime minister with a background in the navy, asked at this time, "Does the adjustment of national policy mean making peace with the United States?"
Mitsumasa Yoneuchi was a pro-British and American faction and had always opposed an alliance with Germany and Italy when he served as Navy Minister and Prime Minister. It has not completely changed its views now. It advocates "coexistence of the United States and Japan", which is similar to the "Three Kingdoms Theory" of Ishihara Kanji and others.
"Peace negotiations with the United States have been ongoing." Tojo replied, "The current operations in the Central Pacific are actually to gain more bargaining chips in the peace talks."
"What about Germany? Germany's attitude doesn't take it into account?" Miney asked next.
"The Central Pacific Operation is conducted to take into account Germany's attitude." Tojo Hideki said, "But the future national policy of the Imperial Kingdom should be to maintain a balance between the United States and Germany, while strengthening itself to ensure that the future world will not be dominated by any one. Dominated by great powers.”
"What about the Hawaiian Islands and the Aleutian Islands?" Miney asked again, "Can we give up?"
"Try not to give up as much as possible." Tojo Hideki glanced at Yamamoto Isoroku when he answered this question.
Yamamoto said: "Yonei-kun, the Combined Fleet will adopt protracted tactics to delay the main force of the U.S. Pacific Fleet in the Hawaiian Islands and wait for opportunities to reinforce Oahu. Since the United States is now eager to deploy troops to reinforce the Atlantic-Caribbean battlefield, the delaying tactics will eventually It might work."
Yamamoto's original attitude was to fight a war to deal with it, but now he has pushed it a step further and changed it to delaying - delaying is more conducive to saving the ship than fighting!
Moreover, the Soviet Pacific Fleet now gave the Japanese Navy an excuse. After breaking through the Kuril Islands chain, the Soviet Pacific Fleet turned east and sailed towards the Aleutian Islands.
Theoretically, the Soviet Pacific Fleet may also go to the west coast of the United States, and then sail to the Atlantic Ocean through the Panama Canal... Therefore, the main force of the Japanese combined fleet going north to intercept and annihilate them is also helping Germany.
In the direction of the central Pacific, Yamamoto and Nagano hoped to use the First Mobile Fleet to deal with it-although the aviation battle would lose a large number of pilots, it might even lose the last elite pilots of the Japanese Navy. However, the losses caused by aviation warfare to the fleet are relatively controllable.
Because there are currently 19 aircraft carriers dispatched with the main force of the Japanese Combined Fleet (including the First Mobile Fleet). Except for the 8 aircraft carriers such as Akagi, Kaga, Zuikaku, Shokaku, Taiho, Unryu, Katsuragi, and Amagi, which are more valuable, the rest None of the 11 aircraft carriers are of high value. It will definitely be eliminated after the Pacific War, and it would not be a pity if it sinks.
If 4 aircraft carrier escort battleships are taken out of 8 expensive aircraft carriers, they will cause trouble for the Soviets. If the remaining 15 aircraft carriers are deployed in dispersed formations, then the probability of high-value aircraft carriers being discovered by the US military will be greatly reduced - it is already difficult to find the enemy's dispersed aircraft carriers in the vast ocean, so Once discovered, I will definitely attack with all my strength, and I won’t be picky anymore.
Therefore, in terms of probability, if the Japanese Navy loses an aircraft carrier in the Central Pacific Battle, there is only about a 26% chance that this aircraft carrier will be a "high-priced aircraft carrier." If 4 aircraft carriers are lost, one of them will "definitely" be a high-priced aircraft carrier. , 8 ships were lost, of which 2 were theoretically high-priced aircraft carriers.
After destroying 8 aircraft carriers in World War I, the Germans will definitely think that their Japanese friends did their best, while the US Pacific Fleet must have suffered heavy losses...