The Siberian intervention and Japanese society

Abstract

Although it took part in the First World War as a member of the allied coalition, Japan incurred far less expense than the Western powers because the conflict was centred on the European continent (Table 5.1). The war was an unprecedented and long-lasting example of total warfare which introduced new weapons and tactics, with the consequence that Japanese operational theory and defence programmes were deeply affected by the experience in Europe. The influence, however, was no more than an indirect one because Japan stayed on the sidelines of the European battlefields. On the other hand, for Japan, the Siberian Intervention was a direct experience in which it mobilized approximately three times more troops and four times more money than during the rest of the conflict.