Note 32 — Chapter IV · The Return
Reading edition
The Allied nations had hit the Japanese from east and west and seriously interfered with their seaborne commerce. Japan was in grave danger of being separated from her stolen southern area—the source of her raw materials. Units within this area were also being forcibly isolated from each other. The fall of Saipan had brought about a “most serious crisis.” Premier Tojo was removed and Kuniaki Koiso formed a new cabinet.32