Eighty Years Ago: Asia Pacific, Aug 15 – 21, 1940

Aug 15, 1940: US Assistant Chief of Naval Operations Rear Admiral Robert L. Ghormley arrives in London with other senior American officers for talks with British counterparts

Aug 16, 1940: US government in discussions with Britain about takeover of bases to strengthen defense of Panama Canal Zone

Aug 17, 1940: Japan demands to take over sections of Shanghai guarded by British forces after their withdrawal

Aug 18, 1940: US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King sign agreement on Permanent Joint Board of Defense, an advisory body on the defense of North America

Aug 19, 1940: US government wants Shanghai Volunteer Corps, rather than the Japanese Army, to take over patrolling of areas in the city to be vacated by the British

Aug 20, 1940: More than 25,000 residents of China’s wartime capital of Chongqing are made homeless in one of the worst Japanese air raids of the year

Aug 21, 1940: Japan approves of US-Canadian agreement on defense of North America, suggesting it may consider setting up similar system for itself in East Asia

Categories: War

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