In early 1943, the planning arm of the JCS had circulated a “Strategic Plan for the Defeat of Japan.” This document envisioned a vital role for China in the last stage of the Pacific War, as a base for bombing raids against Japan and as a source of infantry manpower to destroy the Japanese armies in Asia and (if necessary) the Japanese home islands. To carry it off, the Allies would need to land on the coast of mainland China, and the island of Formosa seemed to offer the key that would unlock the continent’s front door. This China-centric vision of the Pacific endgame created momentum in
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