Asia

Asia was left in an unsettled state. The Japanese empire disappeared leaving nothing in its place. The damage to industry, the destruction of Japanese merchant and military fleets, and the deaths of so many citizens left the Japanese economy in serious straits. The population was demoralized. Their myths and beliefs had been discredited. Their attempt to preserve their culture while assimilating Western technology seemed to have miscarried. They submitted blindly to the American occupation without knowing what it would bring. China was among the winners, but her condition was little better. Alter the Japanese withdrew, the internecine conflict between the Kuomintang faction and the communists flared up again. India was near independence, but it was also divided between Hindus of the Congress Party and the Muslims of the League. British presence had warded away civil strife and withdrawal seemed certain to bring partition and bloodshed. Indochina and Indonesia were in turmoil. The war never stopped. The defeat of the colonizers undermined the artificial unity created by their presence. The attack on Pearl Harbour had forced the Americans to settle in most of the Pacific Islands, where they remained after the war.