Article 8 imposed unit limits but no cumulative ceiling on surface combatants between 600 and 2,000 tons. Qualifying ships could not mount more than four guns above 3 inches, carry torpedo launchers, or be designed for more than 20 knots. Those words still left room for large escorts whose machinery happened to exceed the design speed or whose decks reserved space for wartime additions. Japan may have left this loophole unused because projects such as the Yamato class had already absorbed its industrial capacity. A growing cruiser-submarine threat would give navies a reason to exploit the near-destroyer category before war rather than assume old destroyers and sloops could be replaced quickly after hostilities began.
Notable Point · 31:42-35:38
Article 8 leaves room for powerful escort hulls
Treaty rules for 600-to-2,000-ton surface combatants could support large escort hulls that approach destroyer capability without counting against cumulative limits.