Disarmament
1921-1936
Washington Naval Conference (1921)
The conference was organized by the US and aimed at reducing naval armaments. The
US, UK and Japan all actively built up naval fleets following WWI, but the UK and
Japan couldn’t afford to continue the naval race and the US wanted to decrease spending.
In addition, there was a need to reduce tension between Japan and US in Asia before it
reached the state of international crisis.
US
Issues over
territory in
China and
Philippines
Worried about
loss of trade
relations in
China bc of
Japan
UK
Japan
Didn’t want to
threaten the
alliance they
had with Japan
since 1902
Felt threatened
by the US unwilling to
recognize
territorial
gains and
worried about
naval build-up
Feeling
pressure to
sign an alliance
with US
Washington Naval Conference (1921)
Results of Conference:
• Limited size/number of battleships, aircraft carriers and cruisers (ratio
of 5:5:3)
• No new battleships for 10 years
• Limited construction of bases in the Pacific (this would give Japan
dominance in the eastern Pacific)
Successes:
• There was short-term, limited success – mainly because in order to be
successful they needed to address the reasons for the arms race before
disarmament occurred
• Issues included grievances, territorial claims, mistrust of neighboring nations
• Many nations (Germany, Russia, Japan, Italy) would see rearmament as their
only option
• It was possible that these conferences encouraged aggression rather than
discouraging it
Washington Naval Conference (1921)
While success was short-term and limited, it did further disarmament
negotiations. It was seem by the public as a very positive step (people
were very supportive of any form of disarmament following WWI).
Much of this support was based on the following agreements:
4- Power Agreement: (US, Japan, UK, France) Replaced the Anglo-Japanese
Alliance of 1902 and protected the Asian territorial rights of each nation. Agreed
to defend each other in case of aggression.
9-Power Agreement: this confirmed the Open-Door Policy regarding trade in
China (ended in 1931)
These agreements temporarily reduced tension between the US and
Japan, but depended entirely on the cooperation of each nation. They
were vaguely worded and that it easy for a nation to back out if their
interests changed.
London Naval Conference (1930)
Involved US, UK, Japan, Italy and France
Made revisions to Washington
agreement (10:10:7)
Increased regulations on sub warfare
until 1936
Nations were more willing to reduce arms
Gov’t wanted to save money because
of the Great Depression
Public wasn’t supportive of spending
$$ on military buildup
London Naval Treaty (1936)
Revision of London Agreement –
failure (Japan and Italy walked out)
Increasing issues with German and
Japanese rearmament
Geneva Disarmament Conference
(1932-1934)
Failure because:
•
There were major world issues regarding arms race (Germany was violating
numerous terms of the Versailles Treaty)
•
There was international pressure to revise Paris Peace Settlement
•
Great Depression had reduced optimism (nations were worried about their own
security and “collective security” wasn’t top priority)
•
Problems distinguishing between offensive and defensive weaponsundermined any real discussion at conference)
•
Germany used the conference as a way to show the hypocrisy of other countries
(said either Germany should be allowed to build arms equal to that of other
nations or others should reduce to Germany’s permitted strength)
Geneva Disarmament Conference
(1932-1934)
Hitler left the conference in 1932, but returned in 1933.
By this time he had become Chancellor of Germany.
He had no real interest in diplomatic efforts – he
withdrew from the conference, then from the League
This allowed him the opportunity to openly start a
rearmament plan – this worried France
Geneva Disarmament Conference
(1932-1934)
In addition to German resistance at the conference, Italy also had
issues with the disarmament process – Mussolini wanted to build an
empire.
No real agreements were made at the conference and tensions increased. Nations
had two options on how to best protect themselves:
1. Increase defense spending and continue to build up their militaries
2. Attempt diplomatic negotiations regarding issues in order to avoid
escalation
As long as Germany, Russia, Italy and Japan were determined to
revise the Paris Peace Settlements and recover lost territory, then
there wasn’t much hope for arms reduction.
Writing Prompt - Disarmament
Answer the following questions regarding your opinions on
‘disarmament’ on a separate sheet of paper.
1.
Do you believe there will always be reasons to have weapons? Why
or why not?
2.
How realistic is disarmament as a strategic objective?
3.
Could international policies be put in place to limit the spread of
weapons? What incentives do nations have to disarm and adhere
to these policies?