15,697
edits
Changes
no edit summary
[[File:193109_mukden_incident_railway_sabotage.jpg|thumbnail|left|300px|Japanese experts inspecting the alleged "railway Sabotage" of the the South Manchurian Railway that led to the occupation of Manchuria]]__NOTOC__
In 1931, a dispute near the Chinese city of Mukden (Shenyang) precipitated events that led to the Japanese conquest of Manchuria. In response, U.S. Secretary of State Henry Stimson issued what would become known as the Stimson Doctrine, stating that the United States would not recognize any agreements between the Japanese and Chinese that limited free commercial intercourse in the region.
Given the 1930s worldwide depression, there was little support for economic sanctions to punish the Japanese. Instead, the United States sat in on League of Nations council meetings for the first time to try to convince the League to enforce the Kellogg-Briand Pact, which both Japan and China had signed. Appeals based on the pact, however, proved ineffective.
[[File:IJA_Infantry_in_Manchuria.jpg|thumbnail|left|300px|Japanese Infantry invading Manchuria in 1931]]
====The Stimson Doctrine did little to stim Japanese Aggression in China====
Therefore Secretary Stimson issued the Stimson Doctrine in early 1932. This Doctrine stated that the United States would not recognize any treaty or agreement between Japan and China that violated U.S. rights or agreements to which the United States subscribed.