French Indochina
Relations with Japan during World War I

On 27 August 1914, Japan officially entered the war on the side of the allies (also known as the Entente Powers), Japan invaded and took the German colony of Tsingtao and the rest of the Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory. In November 1914 Japan supplanted the German sphere of influence in southern China with its own political and economic influence, putting it in direct competition with French Indochina. Even though the Japanese openly supported a number of anti-French secessionist movements, such as Prince Cường Để's Duy Tân Hội, the French situation in Europe was bad enough for prime minister Georges Clemenceau to ask the Japanese for their help.

The war situation in Europe was so bad that in 1914, the French considered exchanging French Indochina with Japan for both financial and military support, but this idea was quickly abandoned.

Clemenceau asked the Empire of Japan to aid them with the transportation of the travailleurs et tirailleurs indochinois to Europe and by sending its own forces to help fight in Europe. Clemenceau also wanted Japan to help by intervening in Siberia to fight the Bolshevik forces during the Russian civil war to prevent the loss of the many French-Russian loans, which were important for the French post-war economy.

In 1918, the idea of selling French Indochina to Japan was raised again and, like the first time that it was proposed, it was abandoned again.

Both during and after the war the economic relations between France and Japan strengthened as Japan became a creditor of France following the latter's financial difficulties which came as a result of the war.
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