Canada's Road to the Pacific War: Intelligence, Strategy, and the Far East Crisis (Studies in Canadian Military History)

In December 1941, Japan attacked multiple targets in the Far East
and the Pacific, including Hong Kong, where Canadian battalions were
stationed. The disaster suggested that the Allies were totally
unprepared for war with Japan. This book dispels that assumption by
offering the first in-depth account of Canadian intelligence gathering
and strategic planning leading up to the crisis.

Timothy Wilford reminds us that Canada was both a Pacific and an
Atlantic power, and the first nation to declare war on Japan. Canadian
intelligence officers and strategists monitored Japan's movements
and worked closely with their US and Allied counterparts to develop a
picture of Japan's intentions and a strategic plan to meet
challenges in the Pacific. Although Canada wanted to avoid conflict
with Japan until US participation was assured, policy makers fully
anticipated action in the Pacific and made preparations for national
and imperial defence, which included the internment of Japanese
Canadians.

Canada's Road to the Pacific War sheds new light on
Canadian decision making, Commonwealth strategic planning, and the
emerging Anglo-American special relationship during a crisis that led
to war in the Pacific, as well as to the creation of the Grand
Alliance.

Timothy Wilford received a doctorate in history from
the University of Ottawa and specializes in twentieth-century military
history.