Japanese planners interpreted slow peacetime decision-making in Britain and the United States as evidence that democracies would not accept wartime sacrifice. Some officers knew their British and American counterparts well enough to doubt that assessment, but the wider strategy still sought a Russo-Japanese-style negotiated settlement after a major victory. The mismatch resembles Greek city-states expecting negotiation after battle while Rome answered a defeat by sending more legions. One side could see a decisive battle as an opening for bargaining while the other treated it as one stage in a longer war. Misreading an opponent's political resolve distorted both Japanese operational assumptions and the peace those operations were meant to secure.
Notable Point · 34:06-35:58
Japan misread democratic resolve and war aims
Japanese planners treated democratic debate as evidence that Britain and the United States would accept a negotiated peace, overlooking a different approach to war termination.