Japanese decisive-battle doctrine followed an attritional phase intended to reduce a stronger enemy through distance, geography, and repeated losses. Island garrisons were expected to expend themselves while consuming American time and manpower. Korean labourers, Japanese construction workers, Special Naval Landing Forces, and army troops all contributed to fortifying positions across the island campaigns. The figures given for Tarawa are fourteen coastal guns, fifty other artillery pieces, one hundred machine-gun nests, five hundred pillboxes, and a barrier across the northern lagoon. Those works did not prevent capture, but they made three days of fighting exceptionally costly and fulfilled much of the delaying purpose.
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Tarawa connected island fortification to Japanese attrition doctrine
Japanese beach defence sought to drain American strength before a decisive battle, turning small islands such as Tarawa into costly fortified positions.