Mukden Incident
The
Mukden Incident (
September 18,
1931), also called
Manchurian Incident, occurred in northern
Manchuria when a bomb of unknown origin blew up a section of a Japanese
railroad near Mukden (today's
Shenyang). Japan's military accused
Chinese terrorists, thus providing an excuse for the Japanese
annexation of Manchuria.
After the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), Japan had replaced Russia as the dominant foreign power in Southern Manchuria.
Even though the Japanese cabinet opposed the move and the leaders pledged to the League of Nations they would pull out, the army subsequently established the puppet state of Manchukuo in February 1932.
See also:
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