Editing Axis powers (section)

==Major Axis powers==

===Germany===
{{Main|Nazi Germany|Greater Germanic Reich|Flensburg Government}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-2001-0706-501, Warschau, Walther v. Brauchitsch, Adolf Hitler.jpg|thumb|German Führer [[Adolf Hitler]] along with General [[Walther von Brauchitsch]], during the victory parade in Warsaw after the [[Invasion of Poland|defeat of Poland]], October 1939]]
[[File:Heinkel He 111 during the Battle of Britain.jpg|thumb|German [[Heinkel He 111]] bomber aircraft during the [[Battle of Britain]]]]
[[File:Advance of the Panzerjager-Abteilung 39-AC1942.jpg|thumb|German vehicles advancing during the [[Second Battle of El Alamein]] in the [[North African campaign]]]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1971-107-40, Russland, Kampf um Stalingrad, Infanterie.jpg|thumb|German soldiers during the [[Battle of Stalingrad]] in the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front campaign]]]]
[[File:U-118 Angriff.jpg|thumb|German submarine ''[[German submarine U-118 (1941)|U-118]]'' under air attack in June 1943]]

====War justifications====
Hitler in 1941 described the outbreak of World War II as the fault of the intervention of Western powers against Germany during its war with Poland, describing it as the result of "the European and American warmongers".<ref name="Lewis Copeland 1999 Pp. 485">Lewis Copeland, Lawrence W. Lamm, Stephen J. McKenna. ''The World's Great Speeches: Fourth Enlarged (1999) Edition''. p. 485.</ref> Hitler had designs for Germany to become the dominant and leading state in the world, such as his intention for Germany's capital of Berlin to become the ''Welthauptstadt'' ("World Capital"), renamed [[Welthauptstadt Germania|Germania]].<ref>Hitler's Germany: Origins, Interpretations, Legacies. London, England: Routledge, 1939. p. 134.</ref> The German government also justified its actions by claiming that Germany inevitably needed to territorially expand because it was facing an [[Human overpopulation|overpopulation]] crisis that Hitler described: "We are overpopulated and cannot feed ourselves from our own resources".<ref name="Stephen J. Lee 1945. P. 237">Stephen J. Lee. Europe, 1890–1945. p. 237.</ref> Thus expansion was justified as an inevitable necessity to provide ''[[lebensraum]]'' ("living space") for the German nation and end the country's overpopulation within existing confined territory, and provide resources necessary to its people's well-being.<ref name="Stephen J. Lee 1945. P. 237"/> Since the 1920s, the Nazi Party publicly promoted the expansion of Germany into territories held by the Soviet Union.<ref name="Peter D. Stachura P. 31">Peter D. Stachura. ''The Shaping of the Nazi State''. p. 31.</ref>

Germany justified its war against Poland on the issues of [[German minority in Poland|German minority within Poland]] and Polish opposition to the incorporation of the ethnically German-majority [[Free City of Danzig]] into Germany. While Hitler and the Nazi party before taking power openly talked about destroying Poland and were hostile to Poles, after gaining power until February 1939 Hitler tried to conceal his true intentions towards Poland, and signed a 10-year [[German–Polish declaration of non-aggression|Non-Aggression Pact]] in 1934, revealing his plans to only to his closest associates.<ref>Stutthof. Zeszyty Muzeum, 3. PL {{ISSN|0137-5377}}. Mirosław Gliński Geneza obozu koncentracyjnego Stutthof na tle hitlerowskich przygotowan w Gdansku do wojny z Polska</ref> Relations between Germany and Poland altered from the early to the late 1930s, as Germany sought rapprochement with Poland to avoid the risk of Poland entering the Soviet sphere of influence, and appealed to anti-Soviet sentiment in Poland.<ref name="Jan Karski 2014. P197">Jan Karski. ''The Great Powers and Poland: From Versailles to Yalta''. Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. p. 197.</ref> Hitler even tried to convince Poland to join the Anti-Comintern Pact.{{Sfn|Weinberg|2005|p=32}} The Soviet Union in turn at this time competed with Germany for influence in Poland.<ref name="Jan Karski 2014. P197"/> At the same time Germany was preparing for a war with Poland and was secretly preparing the German minority in Poland for a war.<ref>Maria Wardzyńska, "Był rok 1939. Operacja niemieckiej policji bezpieczeństwa w Polsce Intelligenzaktion Instytut Pamięci Narodowej, IPN 2009</ref>

A [[Danzig crisis|diplomatic crisis erupted]] following Hitler demanding that the Free City of Danzig be annexed to Germany, as it was led by a Nazi government seeking annexation to Germany. Germany used legal precedents to justify its intervention against Poland and annexation of the [[Free City of Danzig]] (led by a local Nazi government that sought incorporation into Germany) in 1939.<ref name="C. Kiss. 1989">A. C. Kiss. ''Hague Yearbook of International Law''. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 1989.</ref> Poland rejected Germany's demands and Germany in response prepared a general mobilization on the morning of 30 August 1939.<ref name="William Young 2006. P. 271">William Young. ''German Diplomatic Relations 1871–1945: The Wilhelmstrasse and the Formulation of Foreign Policy''. iUniverse, 2006. p. 271.</ref>

Germany justified its invasion of the [[Low Countries]] of Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands in May 1940 by claiming that it suspected that Britain and France were preparing to use the Low Countries to launch an invasion of the industrial [[Ruhr]] region of Germany.<ref name="Gabrielle Kirk McDonald 2000. P. 649">Gabrielle Kirk McDonald. ''Documents and Cases, Volumes 1–2''. The Hague, Netherlands: Kluwer Law International, 2000. p. 649.</ref> When war between Germany versus Britain and France appeared likely in May 1939, Hitler declared that the Netherlands and Belgium would need to be occupied, saying: "Dutch and Belgian air bases must be occupied&nbsp;... Declarations of neutrality must be ignored".<ref name="Gabrielle Kirk McDonald 2000. P. 649"/> In a conference with Germany's military leaders on 23 November 1939, Hitler declared to the military leaders that "We have an [[Achilles heel]], the Ruhr", and said that "If England and France push through Belgium and Holland into the Ruhr, we shall be in the greatest danger", and thus claimed that Belgium and the Netherlands had to be occupied by Germany to protect Germany from a British-French offensive against the Ruhr, irrespective of their claims to neutrality.<ref name="Gabrielle Kirk McDonald 2000. P. 649"/>

[[Operation Barbarossa|Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union]] in 1941 involved issues of ''[[lebensraum]]'', [[anti-communism]], and Soviet foreign policy. After Germany invaded the [[Soviet Union]] in 1941, the Nazi regime's stance towards an independent, territorially-reduced Russia was affected by pressure beginning in 1942 from the [[German Army (Wehrmacht)|German Army]] on Hitler to endorse a "[[Russian Liberation Army]]" led by [[Andrey Vlasov]].<ref>Geoffrey A. Hosking. ''Rulers And Victims: The Russians in the Soviet Union''. Harvard University Press, 2006 p. 213.</ref> Initially the proposal to support an anti-communist Russian army was met with outright rejection by Hitler, however by 1944 as Germany faced mounting losses on the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]], Vlasov's forces were recognized by Germany as an ally, particularly by [[Reichsführer-SS]] [[Heinrich Himmler]].<ref>Catherine Andreyev. ''Vlasov and the Russian Liberation Movement: Soviet Reality and Emigré Theories''. First paperback edition. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1989. pp. 53, 61.</ref>

After the [[Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor]] and the outbreak of war between Japan and the United States, Germany supported Japan by declaring war on the US. During the war Germany denounced the [[Atlantic Charter]] and the [[Lend-Lease Act]] that the US adopted to support the Allied powers prior to entry into the alliance, as imperialism directed at dominating and exploiting countries outside of the continental [[Americas]].<ref name="Randall Bennett Woods 1990. P. 200">Randall Bennett Woods. ''A Changing of the Guard: Anglo-American Relations, 1941–1946''. University of North Carolina Press, 1990. p. 200.</ref> Hitler denounced American President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s invoking of the term "freedom" to describe US actions in the war, and accused the American meaning of "freedom" to be the freedom for democracy to exploit the world and the freedom for plutocrats within such democracy to exploit the masses.<ref name="Randall Bennett Woods 1990. P. 200"/>

====History====

At the end of World War I, German citizens felt that their country had been humiliated as a result of the [[Treaty of Versailles]], which included a [[Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles|war guilt clause]] and forced Germany to pay enormous reparations payments and forfeit territories formerly controlled by the German Empire and all its colonies. The pressure of the reparations on the German economy led to [[Inflation in the Weimar Republic|hyperinflation during the early 1920s]]. In 1923 [[Occupation of the Ruhr|the French occupied the Ruhr region]] when Germany defaulted on its reparations payments. Although Germany began to improve economically in the mid-1920s, the [[Great Depression]] created more economic hardship and a rise in political forces that advocated radical solutions to Germany's woes. The Nazis, under Hitler, promoted the nationalist [[stab-in-the-back legend]] stating that Germany had been betrayed by Jews and Communists. The party promised to rebuild Germany as a major power and create a [[German question#Later influence|Greater Germany]] that would include [[Alsace-Lorraine]], Austria, [[Sudetenland]], and other German-populated territories in Europe. The Nazis also aimed to occupy and colonize non-German territories in Poland, the [[Baltic states]], and the Soviet Union, as part of the Nazi policy of seeking ''[[Lebensraum]]'' ("living space") in [[Central and Eastern Europe]].

Germany renounced the Versailles treaty and [[remilitarization of the Rhineland|remilitarized the Rhineland]] in March 1936. Germany had already resumed conscription and announced the existence of a German air force, the [[Luftwaffe]], and naval force, the [[Kriegsmarine]] in 1935. Germany [[Anschluss|annexed Austria in 1938]], the [[German occupation of Czechoslovakia|Sudetenland]] from Czechoslovakia, and the [[Memel territory]] from [[Lithuania]] in 1939. Germany then invaded the rest of Czechoslovakia in 1939, creating the [[Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia]] and the country of [[Slovakia]].

On 23 August 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union signed the [[Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact]], which contained a secret protocol dividing eastern Europe into spheres of influence.{{sfn|Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact|1939}} Germany's invasion of its part of Poland under the Pact eight days later{{sfn|Roberts|2006|p=82}} triggered the beginning of World War II. By the end of 1941, Germany occupied a large part of Europe and [[Wehrmacht|its military forces]] were fighting the Soviet Union, nearly capturing Moscow. However, crushing defeats at the [[Battle of Stalingrad]] and the [[Battle of Kursk]] devastated the German armed forces. This, combined with Western Allied [[Normandy Landings|landings in France]] and [[Allied invasion of Sicily|Italy]], led to a three-front war that depleted Germany's armed forces and resulted in Germany's defeat in 1945.

====Occupied territories====
{{Further|Areas annexed by Nazi Germany|German-occupied Europe}}

The [[Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia]] was created from the dismemberment of Czechoslovakia. Shortly after Germany annexed the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia, the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] declared its independence from the rump [[Second Czechoslovak Republic]]. The new [[Slovak State]] allied itself with Germany. The remainder of the country was occupied by German military forces and organized into the Protectorate. Czech civil institutions were preserved but the Protectorate was considered within the sovereign territory of Germany.

The [[General Government]] was the name given to the territories of [[Occupation of Poland (1939–1945)|occupied Poland]] that were not [[Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany|directly annexed into German provinces]], but like Bohemia and Moravia was considered within the sovereign territory of Germany by the Nazi authorities.

[[Reichskommissariat]]s were established in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Norway, designated as places the "Germanic" populations of which were to be incorporated into the planned Greater Germanic Reich. By contrast the Reichskommissariats established in the east ([[Reichskommissariat Ostland]] in the Baltics, [[Reichskommissariat Ukraine]] in Ukraine) were established as colonies for settlement by Germans.

In Norway, under [[Reichskommissariat Norwegen]], the [[Quisling regime]], headed by [[Vidkun Quisling]], was installed by the Germans as a client regime [[Occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany|during the occupation]], while king [[Haakon VII]] and the legal [[Nygaardsvold's Cabinet|government were in exile]]. Quisling encouraged Norwegians to serve as volunteers [[5th SS Panzer Division Wiking|in the Waffen-SS]], collaborated in the deportation of Jews, and was responsible for the executions of members of the [[Norwegian resistance movement]]. About 45,000 Norwegian collaborators joined the pro-Nazi party ''[[Nasjonal Samling]]'' (National Union), and some police units helped arrest many Jews. However, Norway was one of the first countries where [[resistance during World War II]] was widespread before the turning point of the war in 1943. After the war, [[Legal purge in Norway after World War II|Quisling and other collaborators were executed]]. Quisling's name has become an international [[eponym]] for [[traitor]].

===Italy===
{{Main|Fascist Italy|Latin Bloc (proposed alliance)|Military history of Italy during World War II}}

====War justifications====

[[File:Benito Mussolini portrait as dictator (retouched).jpg|thumb|left|upright|The ''[[Duce]]'' [[Benito Mussolini]] in an official portrait]]
''[[Duce]]'' [[Benito Mussolini]] described Italy's declaration of war against the Western Allies of Britain and France in June 1940 as the following: "We are going to war against the [[Plutocracy|plutocratic]] and [[reactionary]] [[Democracy|democracies]] of the [[Western world|West]] who have invariably hindered the progress and often threatened the very existence of the [[Italians|Italian people]]".<ref>John Whittam. ''Fascist Italy''. Manchester, England; New York: Manchester University Press. p. 165. {{ISBN?}}</ref> Italy condemned the Western powers for enacting sanctions on Italy in 1935 for its actions in the [[Second Italo-Ethiopian War]] that Italy claimed was a response to an act of Ethiopian aggression against tribesmen in [[Italian Eritrea]] in the [[Abyssinia Crisis#Walwal incident|Walwal incident]] of 1934.<ref>Michael Brecher, Jonathan Wilkenfeld. ''Study of Crisis''. University of Michigan Press, 1997. p. 109. {{ISBN?}}</ref> Italy, like Germany, also justified its actions by claiming that Italy needed to territorially expand to provide ''[[spazio vitale]]'' ("vital space") for the Italian nation.<ref name="rodogno46">{{Cite book|first=Davide|last=Rodogno|authorlink=Davide Rodogno|title=Fascism's European Empire: Italian Occupation During the Second World War |location=Cambridge, UK|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2006|pages=46–48|isbn=978-0-521-84515-1}}</ref>

In October 1938 in the aftermath of the Munich Agreement, Italy demanded concessions from France to yield to Italy in Africa.{{sfn|Burgwyn|1997|pp=182-183}} Relations between Italy and France deteriorated with France's refusal to accept Italy's demands.{{sfn|Burgwyn|1997|pp=182–183}} France responded to Italy's demands with threatening naval manoeuvres as a warning to Italy.{{sfn|Burgwyn|1997|pp=182–183}} As tensions between Italy and France grew, Hitler made a major speech on 30 January 1939 in which he promised German military support in the case of an unprovoked war against Italy.{{sfn|Burgwyn|1997|p=185}}

Italy entered World War II on 10 June 1940. Italy justified its [[Greco-Italian War|intervention against Greece in October 1940]] on the allegation that the [[Kingdom of Greece]] was being used by Britain against Italy, Mussolini informed this to Hitler, saying: "Greece is one of the main points of English maritime strategy in the Mediterranean".<ref name="John Lukacs 1941. P. 116">John Lukacs. ''The Last European War: September 1939 – December 1941''. p. 116.</ref>

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-783-0104-09, Nordafrika, italienische Soldaten auf dem Marsch.jpg|thumb|Italian soldiers in the [[North African Campaign]] in 1941]]
Italy justified its [[invasion of Yugoslavia|intervention against Yugoslavia in April 1941]] by appealing to both Italian irredentist claims and the fact of [[Albanian nationalism|Albanian]], [[Croatian nationalism|Croatian]], and [[Macedonian nationalism|Macedonian separatists]] not wishing to be part of [[Yugoslavia]].<ref name="Jozo Tomasevich P. 30-31">Jozo Tomasevich. War and Revolution in Yugoslavia, 1941–1945: Occupation and Collaboration. pp. 30–31.</ref> Croatian separatism soared after the assassination of Croatian political leaders in the [[Parliament of Yugoslavia|National Assembly of Yugoslavia]] in 1928 including the death of [[Stjepan Radić]], and Italy endorsed Croatian separatist [[Ante Pavelić]] and his fascist [[Ustaše]] movement that was based and trained in Italy with the Fascist regime's support prior to intervention against Yugoslavia.<ref name="Jozo Tomasevich P. 30-31"/>

====History====
The intention of the Fascist regime was to create a "[[Italian Empire|New Roman Empire]]" in which Italy would dominate the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]]. In 1935–1936 [[Second Italo-Abyssinian War|Italy invaded and annexed Ethiopia]] and the Fascist government proclaimed the creation of the "[[Italian Empire]]".{{sfn|Lowe|Marzari|2002|p=289}} Protests by the [[League of Nations]], especially the British, who had interests in that area, led to no serious action, although The League did try to enforce economic sanctions upon Italy, but to no avail. The incident highlighted French and British weakness, exemplified by their reluctance to alienate Italy and lose her as their ally. The limited actions taken by the Western powers pushed Mussolini's Italy towards alliance with Hitler's Germany anyway. In 1937 Italy left the League of Nations and joined the [[Anti-Comintern Pact]], which had been signed by Germany and Japan the preceding year. In March/April 1939 Italian troops invaded and annexed [[Albania]]. Germany and Italy signed the [[Pact of Steel]] on May 22.

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101I-783-0104-38, Nordafrika, italienische Panzer M13-40.jpg|thumb|left|Italian [[Fiat M13/40]] tanks in the North African Campaign in 1941]]
Italy was ill-prepared for war, in spite of the fact that it had continuously been involved in conflict since 1935, first with Ethiopia in 1935–1936 and then in the [[Spanish Civil War]] on the side of [[Francisco Franco]]'s [[National faction (Spanish Civil War)|Nationalists]].{{sfn|McKercher|Legault|2001|pp=40–41}} 
Mussolini refused to heed warnings from his minister of exchange and currency, [[Felice Guarneri]], who said that Italy's actions in Ethiopia and Spain meant that Italy was on the verge of bankruptcy.{{sfn|McKercher|Legault|2001|p=41}} By 1939 military expenditures by Britain and France far exceeded what Italy could afford.{{sfn|McKercher|Legault|2001|p=41}} As a result of Italy's economic difficulties its soldiers were poorly paid, often being poorly equipped and poorly supplied, and animosity arose between soldiers and class-conscious officers; these contributed to low morale amongst Italian soldiers.<ref>[[Samuel W. Mitcham]]: ''Rommel's Desert War: The Life and Death of the Afrika Korps''. Stackpole Books, 2007. p. 16.</ref>

[[File:RNVittorio Veneto-Battle of Cape Spartivento.jpg|thumb|right|Italian battleships ''[[Italian battleship Vittorio Veneto|Vittorio Veneto]]'' and ''[[Italian battleship Littorio|Littorio]]'' during the war]]
[[File:A formation of Macchi C.200s escorting bombers.jpg|thumb|Italian [[Macchi C.200]] fighter aircraft during the war]]
By early 1940, Italy was still a non-belligerent, and Mussolini communicated to Hitler that Italy was not prepared to intervene soon. By March 1940, Mussolini decided that Italy would intervene, but the date was not yet chosen. His senior military leadership unanimously opposed the action because Italy was unprepared. No raw materials had been stockpiled and the reserves it did have would soon be exhausted, Italy's industrial base was only one-tenth of Germany's, and even with supplies the Italian military was not organized to provide the equipment needed to fight a modern war of a long duration. An ambitious rearmament program was impossible because of Italy's limited reserves in gold and foreign currencies and lack of raw materials. Mussolini ignored the negative advice.<ref>Stephen L. W. Kavanaugh. ''Hitler's Malta Option: A Comparison of the Invasion of Crete (Operation Merkur) and the Proposed Invasion of Malta'' (Nimble Books LLC, 2010). p. 20.</ref>

By 1941, Italy's attempts to run an autonomous campaign from Germany's, collapsed as a result of military setbacks in Greece, [[North Africa]], and [[Eastern Africa]]; and the country became dependent and effectively subordinate to Germany. After the German-led invasion and occupation of [[Yugoslavia during World War II|Yugoslavia]] and Greece, that had both been targets of Italy's war aims, Italy was forced to accept German dominance in the two occupied countries.<ref name="pp284">Mussolini Unleashed, 1939–1941: Politics and Strategy in Fascist Italy's Last War. pp. 284–285.</ref> Furthermore, by 1941, German forces in North Africa under [[Erwin Rommel]] effectively took charge of the military effort ousting Allied forces from the Italian colony of [[Italian Libya|Libya]], and German forces were stationed in [[Sicily]] in that year.<ref name="knight"/> Germany's insolence towards Italy as an ally was demonstrated that year when Italy was pressured to send 350,000 "guest workers" to Germany who were used as forced labour.<ref name="knight">Patricia Knight. ''Mussolini and Fascism''. Routledge, 2003. p. 103.</ref> While Hitler was disappointed with the Italian military's performance, he maintained overall favorable relations with Italy because of his personal friendship with Mussolini.<ref>Davide Rodogno. ''Fascism's European Empire: Italian Occupation during the Second World War''. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2006. p. 30.</ref><ref name="John Lukacs">John Lukacs. ''The Last European War: September 1939 – December 1941''. Yale University Press, 2001. p. 364.</ref>

On 25 July 1943, following the [[Allied invasion of Sicily]], King Victor Emmanuel III dismissed Mussolini, placed him under arrest, and began secret negotiations with the Western Allies. An [[armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces|armistice]] was signed on 8 September 1943, and four days later Mussolini was rescued by the Germans in [[Gran Sasso raid|Operation Oak]] and placed in charge of a puppet state called the [[Italian Social Republic]] (''Repubblica Sociale Italiana''/RSI, or ''Repubblica di Salò'') in [[northern Italy]]. In order to liberate the country from the Germans and Fascists, Italy became a [[Co-belligerence|co-belligerent]] of the Allies; as result, the country descended in [[Italian civil war|Civil War]], with the [[Italian Co-Belligerent Army]] and the [[Italian resistance movement|partisans]], supported by the Allies, contended the Social Republic's forces and its German allies. Some areas in Northern Italy were liberated from the Germans as late as May, 1945. [[Death of Benito Mussolini|Mussolini was killed]] by Communist partisans on 28 April 1945 while trying to escape to Switzerland.{{sfn|Shirer|1960|p=1131}}

====Colonies and dependencies====
{{main|Italian Empire|Italian imperialism under Fascism}}

===== In Europe =====
[[File:Italian Colonial Empire (orthographic projection).svg|thumb|Every territory ever controlled by the [[Italian Empire]] at some point in time during World War II {{legend|#4a9447|Kingdom of Italy}}{{legend|#c9ff6b|Possessions/colonies of Italy}}{{legend|#666666|Occupied territory and protectorates}}]]
The [[Italian Islands of the Aegean|Dodecanese Islands]] were an Italian dependency known as the [[Italian Islands of the Aegean]] from 1912 to 1943.

Montenegro was an Italian dependency from 1941 to 1943 known as the [[Italian governorate of Montenegro|Governorate of Montenegro]] that was under the control of an Italian military governor. Initially, the Italians intended that Montenegro would become an "independent" state closely allied with Italy, reinforced through the strong dynastic links between Italy and Montenegro, as [[Elena of Montenegro|Queen Elena of Italy]] was a daughter of the last Montenegrin king [[Nicholas I of Montenegro|Nicholas I]]. The Italian-backed [[Montenegrin nationalism|Montenegrin nationalist]] [[Sekula Drljević]] and his followers attempted to create a Montenegrin state. On 12 July 1941, they proclaimed the "Kingdom of Montenegro" under the protection of Italy. In less than 24 hours, that triggered a [[Uprising in Montenegro (1941)|general uprising against the Italians]]. Within three weeks, the insurgents managed to capture almost all the territory of Montenegro. Over 70,000 [[Royal Italian Army]] troops and 20,000 of [[Albanian Kingdom (1939–43)|Albanian]] and [[Sandžak Muslim militia|Muslim]] irregulars were deployed to suppress the rebellion. Drljevic was expelled from Montenegro in October 1941. Montenegro then came under full direct Italian control. With the Italian capitulation of 1943, Montenegro came directly under the control of Germany.

Politically and economically dominated by Italy from its creation in 1913, Albania was occupied by Italian military forces in 1939 as the Albanian king Zog l fled the country with his family. The Albanian parliament voted to offer the Albanian throne to the King of Italy, resulting in a personal union between the two countries.<ref name="countrystudies.us">[http://countrystudies.us/albania/30.htm Albania: A Country Study: Italian Occupation, Library of Congress]. Last accessed 14 February 2015.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/albania/28.htm|title=Albania – Italian Penetration|website=countrystudies.us}}</ref>

===== In Africa =====
[[Italian East Africa]] was an Italian colony existing from 1936 to 1943. Prior to the invasion and annexation of Ethiopia into this united colony in 1936, Italy had two colonies, Eritrea and Somalia since the 1880s.

[[Italian Libya|Libya]] was an Italian colony existing from 1912 to 1943. The northern portion of Libya was incorporated directly into Italy in 1939; however the region remained united as a colony under a colonial governor.

===Japan===

{{Main|Empire of Japan}}

====War justifications====
[[File:Patto Tripartito.jpg|thumb|Italian propaganda poster by [[Gino Boccasile]] illustrating the strength of the Tripartite Pact, with [[samurai]] warrior sinking British and American ships, and the [[naval ensign]]s of the three powers flying behind him.]]
The Japanese government justified its actions by claiming that it was seeking to unite [[East Asia]] under Japanese leadership in a [[Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere]] that would free [[East Asian people|East Asians]] from domination and rule by clients of Western powers.<ref>[[Barak Kushner]]. The Thought War: Japanese Imperial Propaganda. University of Hawaii Press, p. 119.</ref> Japan invoked themes of [[Pan-Asianism]] and said that the Asian people needed to be free from Western influence.<ref>Hilary Conroy, Harry Wray. ''Pearl Harbor Reexamined: Prologue to the Pacific War''. University of Hawaii Press, 1990. p. 21.</ref>

The United States opposed the [[Second Sino-Japanese War]], and recognized [[Chiang Kai-shek|Chiang Kai-Shek]]'s [[Nationalist Government]] as the legitimate government of China. As a result, the United States sought to bring the Japanese war effort to a halt by imposing an embargo on all trade between the United States and Japan. Japan was dependent on the United States for 80 percent of its [[petroleum]], and as a consequence the embargo resulted in an economic and military crisis for Japan, as Japan could not continue its war effort against China without access to petroleum.<ref>Euan Graham. ''Japan's sea lane security, 1940–2004: a matter of life and death?'' Oxon, England; New York: Routledge, 2006. p. 77.</ref>

In order to maintain its military campaign in China with the major loss of petroleum trade with the United States, Japan saw the best means to secure an alternative source of petroleum in the petroleum-rich and natural-resources-rich [[Southeast Asia]].<ref name="Daniel Marston 2011">Daniel Marston. ''The Pacific War: From Pearl Harbor to Hiroshima''. Osprey Publishing, 2011.</ref> This threat of retaliation by Japan to the total trade embargo by the United States was known by the American government, including American Secretary of State [[Cordell Hull]] who was negotiating with the Japanese to avoid a war, fearing that the total embargo would pre-empt a Japanese attack on the [[Dutch East Indies]].<ref>Hilary Conroy, Harry Wray. ''Pearl Harbor Reexamined: Prologue to the Pacific War''. University of Hawaii Press, 1990. p. 60.</ref>

Japan identified the [[United States Pacific Fleet]] based in [[Pearl Harbor Naval Base]] as the principal threat to its designs to invade and capture Southeast Asia.<ref name="Daniel Marston 2011"/> Thus Japan initiated the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 as a means to inhibit an American response to the invasion of Southeast Asia, and buy time to allow Japan to consolidate itself with these resources to engage in a [[total war]] against the United States, and force the United States to accept Japan's acquisitions.<ref name="Daniel Marston 2011"/> On 7 December 1941 Japan [[Japanese declaration of war on the United States and the British Empire|declared war on the United States and the British Empire]].

====History====

[[File:Japanese Special Naval Landing Forces in Battle of Shanghai 1937.jpg|thumb|[[Imperial Japanese Navy|IJN]] [[Special Naval Landing Forces]] armed with the [[Type 11 Light Machine Gun]] during the [[Battle of Shanghai]]]]

[[File:Shokaku Pearl Harbor 1st Wave.jpg|thumb|[[Mitsubishi A6M Zero]] fighter aircraft and other aircraft preparing for takeoff on the aircraft carrier ''[[Japanese aircraft carrier Shōkaku|Shōkaku]]'' on 7 December 1941, for the [[attack on Pearl Harbor]]]]

[[File:Greater Asian Co-prosperity sphere.png|thumb|left|{{legend|#ee0303|[[Empire of Japan]]}}{{legend|#e65e5e|Japanese puppet states}}{{legend|#b90303|Thailand (cooperated with Japan)}} All are members of the [[Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere]].]]

The [[Empire of Japan]], a constitutional monarchy with [[Hirohito]] as its Emperor, was the principal Axis power in [[Asia-Pacific|Asia and the Pacific]]. Under the emperor were a political cabinet and the [[Imperial General Headquarters]], with two chiefs of staff. By 1945 the Emperor of Japan was more than a symbolic leader; he played a major role in devising a strategy to keep himself on the throne.<ref>Herbert P. Bix, ''Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan'' (2001) ch. 13</ref>

At its peak, Japan's [[Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere]] included [[Manchuria]], [[Inner Mongolia]], large parts of China, Malaysia, [[French Indochina]], the [[Dutch East Indies]], the Philippines, [[Burma]], a small part of India, and various Pacific Islands in the central Pacific.

As a result of the internal discord and economic downturn of the 1920s, [[Japanese militarism|militaristic elements]] set Japan on a path of expansionism. As the Japanese home islands lacked natural resources needed for growth, Japan planned to establish hegemony in Asia and become self-sufficient by acquiring territories with abundant natural resources. Japan's expansionist policies alienated it from other countries in the [[League of Nations]] and by the mid-1930s brought it closer to Germany and Italy, who had both pursued similar expansionist policies. Cooperation between Japan and Germany began with the [[Anti-Comintern Pact]], in which the two countries agreed to ally to challenge any attack by the Soviet Union.

Japan entered into conflict [[Second Sino-Japanese War|against the Chinese]] in 1937. The Japanese invasion and occupation of parts of China resulted in numerous atrocities against civilians, such as the [[Nanjing Massacre]] and the [[Three Alls Policy]]. The Japanese also [[Soviet–Japanese border conflicts|fought skirmishes]] with Soviet–[[Mongolian People's Republic|Mongolian]] forces in [[Manchukuo]] in 1938 and 1939. Japan sought to avoid war with the Soviet Union by signing a [[Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact|non-aggression pact]] with it in 1941.

[[File:IJA-paratroopers-Palembang-11.jpg|thumb|[[Imperial Japanese Army|IJA]] paratroopers are landing during the [[Battle of Palembang]], February 13, 1942.]]
[[File:Japanese battleships Yamato and Musashi moored in Truk Lagoon, in 1943 (L42-08.06.02).jpg|thumb|[[Imperial Japanese Navy|IJN]] Yamato-class Battleships ''[[Japanese battleship Yamato|Yamato]]'' and ''[[Japanese battleship Musashi|Musashi]]'' moored in [[Truk Lagoon]], in 1943]]

Japan's military leaders were divided on diplomatic relationships with Germany and Italy and the attitude towards the United States. The [[Imperial Japanese Army]] was in favour of war with the United States, but the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] was generally strongly opposed. When [[Prime Minister of Japan]] General [[Hideki Tojo]] refused American demands that Japan withdraw its military forces from China, a confrontation became more likely.{{sfn|Dull|2007|p=5}} War with the United States was being discussed within the Japanese government by 1940.{{sfn|Asada|2006|pp=275–276}} Commander of the Combined Fleet Admiral [[Isoroku Yamamoto]] was outspoken in his opposition, especially after the signing of the Tripartite Pact, saying on 14 October 1940: "To fight the United States is like fighting the whole world. But it has been decided. So I will fight the best I can. Doubtless I shall die on board {{ship|Japanese battleship|Nagato||2}} [his flagship]. Meanwhile, Tokyo will be burnt to the ground three times. Konoe and others will be torn to pieces by the revengeful people, I [shouldn't] wonder. "{{sfn|Asada|2006|pp=275–276}} In October and November 1940, Yamamoto communicated with Navy Minister Oikawa, and stated, "Unlike the pre-Tripartite days, great determination is required to make certain that we avoid the danger of going to war. "{{sfn|Asada|2006|pp=275–276}}

With the European powers focused on the war in Europe, Japan sought to acquire their colonies. In 1940 Japan responded to the [[Battle of France|German invasion of France]] by occupying northern [[French Indochina]]. The [[Vichy France]] regime, a ''de facto'' ally of Germany, accepted the takeover. The allied forces did not respond with war. However, the United States instituted an embargo against Japan in 1941 because of the continuing war in China. This cut off Japan's supply of scrap metal and oil needed for industry, trade, and the war effort.

[[File:Falkenhorst onodera morath fjell festning 1943 triple 28 cm triple naval gun gneisenau.jpg|thumb|Japanese Military Attaché, Makoto Onodera, visiting [[Fjell Fortress]] in Norway, 1943. Behind him is Lieutenant Colonel Eberhard Freiherr von Zedlitz und Neukrich (C-in-C Luftwaffe Feldregiment 502.), and to the right is Fregattenkapitän doktor Robert Morath (Seekommandant in Bergen). Behind Onoderas hand (raised in salute) is General [[Nikolaus von Falkenhorst]] (C-in-C German military forces in Norway).]]

To isolate the US forces stationed in the [[Commonwealth of the Philippines|Philippines]] and to reduce US naval power, the [[Imperial General Headquarters]] ordered [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|an attack]] on the US naval base at [[Pearl Harbor]], Hawaii, on 7 December 1941. They also invaded [[Japanese invasion of Malaya|Malaya]] and [[Battle of Hong Kong|Hong Kong]]. Initially achieving a series of victories, by 1943 the Japanese forces were driven back towards the home islands. The [[Pacific War]] lasted until the [[atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]] in 1945. The Soviets formally declared war in August 1945 and [[Soviet invasion of Manchuria|engaged Japanese forces]] in Manchuria and northeast China.

====Colonies and dependencies====
{{main|Japanese colonial empire}}
[[Taiwan]] was a [[Taiwan under Japanese rule|Japanese dependency]] established in 1895. [[Korea]] was a [[Korea under Japanese rule|Japanese protectorate and dependency]] formally established by the [[Japan–Korea Treaty of 1910]].

The [[South Seas Mandate]] were territories granted to Japan in 1919 in the peace agreements of World War I, that designated to Japan the German South Pacific islands. Japan received these as a reward by the Allies of World War I, when Japan was then allied against Germany.

[[File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Indonesische jongens tijdens hun soldatentraining door de Japanners TMnr 10001989.jpg|thumb|left|Japanese officers training young Indonesian recruits, c. 1945]]

[[Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies|Japan occupied the Dutch East Indies]] during the war. Japan planned to transform these territories into a client state of [[Indonesia]] and sought alliance with Indonesian nationalists including future Indonesian President [[Sukarno]], however these efforts did not deliver the creation of an Indonesian state until after Japan's surrender.<ref>Li Narangoa, R. B. Cribb. ''Imperial Japan and National Identities in Asia, 1895–1945''. Psychology Press, 2003. pp. 15–16.</ref>