The Washington Naval Treaty gave Japan three-fifths of the American allowance, below the seven-tenths relationship it had sought. The argument here connects that outcome with a lasting Japanese sense of naval exposure. Officers who regarded their fleet as chronically weak had reason to seek operational ways to compensate. This interpretation also treats the resulting insecurity as an obstacle to trust and cooperation with the United States. The treaty ratio supplies part of the proposed context for Japanese planning.
Notable Point · 10:23-11:33
The treaty ratio turns insecurity into planning pressure
Japan's failure to secure its preferred 7:10 capital-ship ratio encouraged planners to seek operational ways around perceived numerical weakness.