The proposed war plan moved the Mediterranean Fleet to Singapore before reinforcement by the Home Fleet. From there, British forces would advance through the South China Sea, recover useful bases along the Chinese coast, and impose a maritime blockade rather than invade the Japanese home islands. T-class submarines would threaten Japanese approaches and support a close blockade as specialised ambush weapons. British planners expected the United States to join because neither power wanted the other to defeat Japan alone. A unilateral victory could make Britain or America the dominant Far Eastern naval power, so blockade strategy and coalition politics were intertwined.
Chapter · 36:27-38:40
The Far Eastern blockade plan and Anglo-American interests
The British plan paired an advance through the South China Sea and a blockade of Japan with submarine ambushes and an expectation of eventual American participation.