To a certain degree, comparable occupation policies were followed in Germany. Indeed, the “Europe-first” policy the United States pursued from the beginning of its involvement in World War II made Germany’s prior surrender inevitable and meant that policies adopted for that defeated nation would be used as guidelines in drafting postsurrender policy for Japan. Nonetheless, differences were notable. Most obviously, of course, all of Japan was placed under American control, whereas occupied Germany had been divided into U.S., British, French, and Soviet zones.
