International Conference on Naval Limitation Begins
The International Conference on Naval Limitation, also known as the Washington Conference, took place in Washington, D.C., from November 12, 1921, to February 6, 1922. This pivotal gathering brought together delegates from nine nations, including Belgium, China, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, and the United States, with the primary aim of regulating naval armaments among major powers in the Pacific region. The conference led to the establishment of three significant treaties: the Four Power Treaty, which ensured mutual respect for territorial possessions in the Pacific; the Five Power Treaty, which set limits on the construction of large warships; and the Nine Power Treaty, which reaffirmed the principle of Chinese territorial integrity and promoted free trade in China. These agreements were instrumental in maintaining relative peace until the 1930s. However, growing militarism, particularly from Japan, ultimately undermined these treaties, leading to increased tensions and conflicts in the region. The outcomes of the conference had long-lasting implications, particularly as they set the stage for Japan's aggressive expansion during the 1930s and the eventual outbreak of World War II.
International Conference on Naval Limitation Begins
International Conference on Naval Limitation Begins
The International Conference on Naval Limitation, comprised of delegates from the countries of Belgium, China, France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, and the United States, met in Washington, d.c., beginning on November 12, 1921. Known as the Washington Conference, it lasted until February 6, 1922. The purpose of the conference was to impose restraints on the size of the navies maintained by the major powers in the East Asian portion of the Pacific Ocean.
The Washington Conference resulted in three major treaties:
The Four Power Treaty. Entered into by France, Great Britain, Japan, and the United States, it pledged that those nations would respect each other's possessions in the Pacific.
The Five Power Treaty. Entered into by France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, and the United States, it imposed a formula for the number of large warships (defined as those greater than 10,000 tons' displacement) that could be maintained by these countries. (It was the most important of the three treaties.)
The Nine Power Treaty. Entered into by all of the nine participating countries at the Washington Conference, it pledged respect for Chinese territorial integrity and the open-door policy of free international trade with China. The Chinese were also able to reassert some control over governmental functions that had been seized over the years by the Western powers and Japan.
These three treaties succeeded in maintaining the peace until the 1930s. However, in 1931 an increasingly militaristic Japan invaded China, and in 1934 it renounced the Five Power Treaty. Diplomatic protests notwithstanding, the United States and the other countries that had participated in the Washington Conference took no effective measures to punish Japan for its actions. The Japanese continued on a course of naval buildup and militaristic expansion that would eventually lead to the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor and their defeat in World War II by the United States and other members of the Allied coalition.