Summary:

Henry Oinas-Kukkonen, The Janus Face of US – Japanese Communist Friendship.

Friendship is sometimes emphasized in very surprising situations, even when counterparts are not actually expected to get along together. Because the United States was attempting to win the World War II against Japan as fast as possible and with as few losses as possible, the Americans hoped for a contribution to the war effort from the Japanese Communists, who, on their part, expected the Americans to liberate them from Japanese prisons and to legalize their party in the country. Later, the Americans hoped to utilize the Communists in the democratization process during the Occupation of Japan. As allies against the Axis Powers, the Americans and the Japanese Communists shared short-term goals and their relations included sympathy and trust. However, distrust and antipathy eventually prevailed due to the long-term goals of the Communists to establish a communist society and the US goal to prevent the rise of such society. Thus, the US-Japanese Communist relationship was Janus faced.