Japanese invasion of Thailand

1941 brief attempt at invading Thailand by Imperial Japan

The Japanese invasion of Thailand (การบุกครองไทยของญี่ปุ่น, ; 日本軍のタイ進駐 ) occurred on 8 December 1941. It was briefly fought between the Kingdom of Thailand and the Empire of Japan. Despite fierce fighting in Southern Thailand, the fighting lasted only five hours before ending in a ceasefire. Thailand and Japan then formed an alliance making Thailand part of the Axis alliance until the end of World War II.

The origin of Japanese invasion of Thailand can be traced to the principle of hakkō ichiu as espoused by Tanaka Chigaku in the mid to late 1800s. Tanaka interpreted the principle as meaning that imperial rule had been divinely ordained to expand until it united the entire world. While Tanaka saw this outcome as resulting from the Emperor's moral leadership, Japanese nationalists used it in terms of freeing Asia from colonizing powers and establishing Japan as the leading influence in Asia. The concept became expressed in the New Order in East Asia (東亜新秩序). In 1940, the concept was expanded by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe, who sought to create the Greater East Asia Co Prosperity Sphere, including Japan, Manchukuo, China, and parts of Southeast Asia. This would, according to imperial propaganda, establish a new international order seeking "co prosperity" for Asian countries which would share prosperity and peace, free from Western colonialism and domination under the umbrella of a benevolent Japan. The 30 man Number 82 Section (also known as the Taiwan Army Research Unit or Doro Nawa Unit) Strike South planning was formed in 1939 or 1940 to bring this about. In its final planning stages, the unit was commanded by Colonel Yoshihide Hayashi.

As part of conquering Southeast Asia, the Japanese military planned to invade Malaya and Burma. In order to do this, they needed to make use of Thai ports, railways, and airfields. They did not want conflict with the Thai military, as this would delay the invasion and significantly reduce the element of surprise. The Japanese plan was seen by the Nazi government of Germany as helpful in diverting the United Kingdom's military forces, and thus assisting Germany in its own conflict. Thailand had a well disciplined military, and after a series of border skirmishes in 1940 had invaded neighbouring French Indochina to recover provinces lost in the Franco Siamese crisis of 1893. The Japanese, who wanted to use the Indo Chinese ports and air bases, acted as negotiators to bring about a settlement between the French and Thais on 31 January 1941. As part of the process, secret discussions were held with Thai Prime Minister Plaek Phibunsongkhram, in which the Japanese military sought free passage through Thailand. Phibun had responded positively, but his later actions showed he may have been very uncertain, as he had concluded the British–Thai Non Aggression Pact on 12 June 1940. By February, the British were beginning to suspect the Japanese were planning to attack their possessions in Southeast Asia and were concerned Japan might set up bases in Thailand to that end. The situation Phibun faced was that France had now been defeated by Germany, and Britain was heavily engaged in Europe; the United States had until then taken a neutral stance on both the European war and the Japanese war with China; and Japan was a superpower with a growing buildup of forces in French Indochina. Phibun could have decided he had little choice, as his own forces would have been unable to defeat the Japanese by themselves. Thailand's invasion of French Indochina in 1940 also made it difficult for the United States government to support Phibun. Midway through 1941, Phibun sought British and American guarantees of effective support if Japan invaded Thailand. Neither the United Kingdom nor the United States could give them, although British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was in favour of a public warning to Japan that an invasion of the Southeast Asian kingdom would result in a British declaration of war. However, the United States was unwilling to agree to this, and Britain was not prepared to make it alone. By August, the United Kingdom and the United States had placed sanctions against Japan. (For further information, see the Hull note and the McCollum memo.) The Japanese sought to have the sanctions lifted by promising not to encroach on Thailand and withdrawing their forces from Indochina, provided the United States withdrew its support for China. On 1 December 1941, Prime Minister Tojo of Japan stated that he was uncertain where Thailand stood regarding allowing Japanese troops free passage through its territory, but was hopeful a clash could be avoided. Further negotiations took place between the Japanese diplomatic representative, Tamara, and Phibun on 2 December. Phibun was prepared to look the other way if Japan invaded the Kra Peninsula, but wanted them to avoid passing through the Bangkok Plain. After further discussions on 3 December, Phibun agreed to passage through Thailand, provided Thailand could regain the territories ceded in the Anglo Siamese Treaty of 1909, as well as Burma's Shan State. On 2 December, the Japanese military issued the order "Climb Mount Niitaka", which set in motion the war in the Pacific. The main invasion fleet for Operation "E", the invasion of Malaya and Thailand, sailed from Sanya, Hainan Island, China on 4 December. Further troops and ships joined the fleet from Cam Ranh Bay, Indochina. While the Japanese were preparing, the British and Americans were formulating their response to the Japanese troop buildup and the potential invasion of Thailand. Phibun, on the same day he reached an agreement with the Japanese, was advised by the British that Thailand was about to be invaded by the Japanese. There is a possibility of imminent Japanese invasion of your country. If you are attacked, defend yourselves. The preservation of the true independence and sovereignty of Thailand is a British interest, and we shall regard an attack on you as an attack upon ourselves.||Prime Minister Winston Churchill's message to Field Marshal Phibun Songkhram. At noon on 6 December, one of three RAAF No 1 Squadron Lockheed Hudsons on a reconnaissance flight over the South China Sea, located three Japanese ships steaming west, and about 15 minutes later, sighted the IJN Southern Expeditionary Fleet convoy, consisting of a battleship, five cruisers, seven destroyers and 22 transports. One of the two merchant seaplane tenders with the convoy, the Kamikawa Maru, launched a Mitsubishi F1M "Pete" floatplane to intercept the Hudson, which eluded it by taking cover in the clouds. A few minutes later, a second Hudson also sighted the convoy. Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke Popham was advised of the sightings at 14:00. He was not authorised to take any action against the convoy, as Britain was not at war with Japan, the Japanese intentions were still unclear, and no aggressive action had yet been taken against British or Thai territory. He put his forces in Malaya on full alert and ordered continued surveillance of the convoy. On 7 December at 03:00, Vice Admiral Jisaburō Ozawa ordered patrols in the area between the convoy and Malaya. The convoy was about from Kota Bharu. There was heavy rain and zero visibility. The Kamikawa Maru and Sagara Maru launched 11 F1M2's and six Aichi E13A's. About west northwest of Panjang Island at 08:20, an E13A1 ZI 26 from the Kamikawa Maru, piloted by Ensign Ogata Eiichi, spotted a No. 205 Squadron RAF Consolidated PBY Catalina reconnaissance flying boat (W8417), piloted by Warrant Officer William E Webb. Ogata attacked the Catalina from the rear, damaging it and destroying its radio. Ogata shadowed the Catalina for 25 minutes until five Nakajima Ki 27 "Nate" fighters from the JAAF's 1st Sentai in Indo China arrived and shot it down. Webb and his crew were the first casualties of the Pacific War. Unaware of this incident, the British took no action. Ogata would later be killed in the Battle of the Coral Sea. At 23:00 on 7 December, the Japanese presented the Thai government with an ultimatum to allow the Japanese military to enter Thailand. The Thais were given two hours to respond.

Japan had units of its 15th Army under Lieutenant General Shōjirō Iida and 25th Army under Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamashita stationed in Indochina. Both armies had combat aircraft units. The 15th Army was tasked with the attack on Burma and the 25th with Malaya and Singapore. In order to attack Burma, the 15th Army needed to pass over the Bangkok plain, while the 25th Army needed to attack Malaya via the Kra Peninsula. The attack through Thailand on Malaya and Singapore was planned by Colonel Masanobu Tsuji while he was part of Unit 82. The Japanese had about 100,000 troops who needed to pass through Thailand.

Prachuap Khiri Khan was home to the Royal Thai Air Force's Fifth Wing, under the command of Wing Commander Mom Luang Prawat Chumsai. The Japanese 2nd Infantry Battalion of the 143rd Infantry Regiment under Major Kisoyoshi Utsunomiya landed at 03:00 from one troopship, and occupied the town after having crushed police resistance there. Further landings took place near the airfield to the south. The Japanese laid siege to the airfield, but the Thai airmen along with Prachuap Khirikhan Provincial Police managed to hold out until noon on the next day, when they too received the ceasefire order. The Japanese lost 115 dead according to Japanese estimates,

The Japanese 3rd Battalion of the 4th Guards Infantry Regiment landed at Samut Prakan in the early hours of 8 December. It was tasked with the capture of Bangkok. The force was met by a small Thai police detachment. Despite a tense confrontation, fighting did not occur and the Japanese subsequently agreed not to enter the Thai capital until formal negotiations were concluded. Some favoured continued resistance, including the establishment of a government in exile, but when Phibun finally arrived, the decision was made to relent, and the Thais caved into Japan's demands. The Japanese then moved into Bangkok, occupying Chinatown (Sampeng) and turning the Chamber of Commerce Building into a command post.

The Japanese air force attacked Don Muang Royal Thai Air Force Base, which was defended by the Thai air force. The Thais lost six fighter planes to a numerically superior Japanese force.

A Japanese infantry company from the 1st Battalion of the 143rd Infantry Regiment landed from one troopship at the coastal village of Ban Don in the early hours of 8 December. They marched into Surat Thani, where they were opposed by Royal Thai Police and civilian volunteers. The desultory fighting took place amid a rainstorm, and only ended in the afternoon when the hard pressed Thais received orders to lay down their arms. The Thais lost 17 or 18 dead, but the number of injured was not known.

Due to its closeness to the Malayan border, Pattani was the second most important objective of the Japanese 25th Army. Eight IJN destroyers including the Shirakumo and Shinonome provided support for the five troop transports. The landings by the 42nd Infantry Regiment of the IJA 5th Division led by Major Shigeharu Asaeda were made despite the rough seas and on unsuitable landing grounds. The invaders were effectively opposed by the Thai 42nd Infantry Battalion, Pattani Provincial Police, and Thai Yuwachon Thahan units (the 66th Yuwachon Thahan Training Unit from Benjama Rachoothit School), until the battalion was ordered to cease fire at midday. The Thai battalion commander, Khun (ขุน) Inkhayutboriharn, was killed in action along with 23 other ranks, 5 Provincial Police, 4 Yuwachon Thahan members, and 9 civilians. Major Shigeharu Asaeda, when a member of Taiwan Army Unit 82, had been involved with intelligence gathering in Burma, Thailand, and Malaya prior to the outbreak of war and had selected Pattani as a suitable landing site. Unknown to him, beyond the sandy beach, was a muddy sea bed which caused the invading force considerable difficulty.

The port city of Songkhla was one of the main objectives of Yamashita's 25th Army. During the early hours of 8 December, three regiments of the Japanese 5th Division led by Colonel Tsuji under Lieutenant General Matsui Takuro landed there from 10 troop transports. The landing was supported by IJN destroyers , , , and
The Thai garrison at Khao Khor Hong (the 41st Infantry Battalion and the 13th Artillery battalion) immediately occupied positions alongside the roads leading down to Malaya, but were brushed aside into positions the main Japanese advance could ignore. A further clash occurred at Hat Yai. The Thais lost 15 dead (8 KIA from 41st Inf. Bat. and 7 from the 5th Inf. bat.) and 30 55 wounded. The fighting ceased at noon when orders for an armistice to be arranged was received.

While these landings were taking place in Thailand, troops from the Japan's 25th Army also landed further south at Kota Bharu in Malaya. Once Thailand was secured the 15th Army's 143rd Regiment moved north to replace the Imperial Guards. The Imperial Guards headed south to join the 25th Army and participate in the invasion of Malaya and Singapore. The 15th Army moved to attack Burma.

Phibun's decision to sign an armistice with Japan effectively ended Churchill's hopes of forging an alliance with Thailand. Phibun also granted Japan permission to use Thailand as a base of operations to invade neighbouring Malaya. Within hours after the armistice came into effect, squadrons of Japanese aircraft had flown into Songkla airfield from Indochina, allowing them to carry out air raids on strategic bases in Malaya and Singapore from a short distance. On 14 December, Phibun signed a secret agreement with the Japanese committing Thai troops in the Malayan Campaign and Burma Campaign. An alliance between Thailand and Japan was formally signed on 21 December 1941. On 25 January 1942, the Thai government declared war on the United States and the United Kingdom. In response, all Thai assets in the United States were frozen by the federal government. While the Thai ambassador in London delivered the declaration of war to the British administration, Seni Pramoj, Thai ambassador to Washington, D. C., refused to do so, instead organising the Free Thai Movement.