Why paper fleet totals were not enough in the Far East

Treaty ratios supplied a useful comparison between British and Japanese capital ships, but they did not determine the force available in the Western Pacific. The farther the Royal Navy operated from home, the more frequently ships needed refit, repair, fuel, and stores. Singapore was therefore part of the fighting system rather than a passive symbol of imperial presence. Political uncertainty over the Anglo-Japanese alliance also affected how urgently that system had to be built. Preparation strategy linked diplomacy, base construction, and deployable fleet strength before a crisis made the missing capacity impossible to improvise.