A postwar political cartoon becomes a guide to competing Russian, German, French, British, and Japanese interests in China. Japan appears beside the European powers rather than as a passive target, emphasizing its own place in the struggle to divide influence. War offered distant customers and a testing ground for weapons, rewarding the states and firms that supplied both belligerents. It also kept China and Japan focused on each other instead of watching foreign encroachment elsewhere. Reading the cartoon therefore requires attention to both the artist's political message and the material interests behind the scene.
Notable Point · 45:04-48:34
Imperial powers and the arms market
European powers benefited when China and Japan bought weapons and concentrated on each other rather than foreign encroachment.