Why did Japan attack Pearl Harbor in 1941?

Answer 1

Japan attacked Pearl Harbor because the U.S. enacted an embargo on all oil supplies to Japan. The reason for the embargo is because Japan was invading China. The U.S. embargo cut-off 90% of Japans resources, which crippled their economy and most importantly military. They didn't specifically want to go to war, they just wanted to cripple the United States so they could bring them to the bargaining table to negotiate expansion into Asia. Unfortuantely, the Japanese didn't understand the United States way of thinking, which was "You bomb us, you declare war, and we pulverize you." On the Japanese side of the equation, it was simply a misunderstanding about how to negotiate terms with the Americans.

Japan attacked Pearl Harbor specifically for an important reason. Pearl Harbor was the home of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Japan did not want the U.S. in the war because the U.S. at this time had the greatest Naval force. They concluded that if the Pacific Fleet was destroyed, Americans would feel de-moralized and not want to fight. Additionally, an attack on the Pacific Fleet would take the U.S. six months to recuperate and rebuild the Navy.

Answer 2

They were trying to take over most of the Pacific Rim. The US fleet was a threat to those plans.Hawaiii was a crucial strategic jumping off point for the US fleet so they attacked there thinking that if the US was out of the way they could invade China, Korea and the Phillipines without substantial resistance.

Answer 3

Expanding on all the previous answers, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor hoping to eliminate the ability of the US to threaten their invasion of southeast Asia. They had to invade southeast Asia to seek resources (particularly oil) that couldn't be purchased due to the American embargo. The US had placed the embargo in response to the Sino-Japanese War. The Japanese were fighting the Chinese over Manchuria, which the Japanese had siezed following charges of terrorist attacks on Japanese owned rail lines in the area.
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Answer 4

Please tell me you are not in my history 108 class at VCU.