Washington Treaty fortification status quo

The Washington settlement preserved a status quo across specified Pacific possessions: no new naval bases or fortifications, no increase in repair capacity, and no stronger coastal defense beyond normal replacement. Worn-out weapons and equipment could be repaired or replaced as part of normal peacetime establishments, but the rule blocked meaningful expansion. A map-based discussion shows that the restriction fell differently on each power's geography and anticipated route to war. American planners faced a broad ocean and island chain, Japan looked across both the Pacific and the Asian mainland, and Britain envisioned a route through Singapore and the Philippines. The Grampus-class minelaying submarines appear as one British response, intended to close island channels and approaches in Southeast Asian waters when fixed defenses could not simply be expanded.