Operation KETSU-GO
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Operation KETSU-GO was the top-level Japanese plan for defense of the home islands against American amphibious warfare. Given Japan's shortages in resources and technology, it was not intended to throw back an invasion, but to make it so costly that the United States would be more willing to negotiate.
Like the corresponding U.S. Operation DOWNFALL, it broadly split Japan into two defense zones, one for Kyushu and one for the Kanto Plain. There were contingencies for outlying areas, and a special defense zone, within the Kanto Plain, for Tokyo. A Japanese General Army was a major headquarters roughly equivalent to an Allied army group. Japanese Area Armies were comparable to field armies.[1]
| Plan | Area covered | Command | Reporting |
|---|---|---|---|
| KETSU-GO 1 | Hokkaido, Kuriles, souther Sakhalin | Fifth Area Army | Imperial General Headquarters |
| KETSU-GO 2 | Northern Honshu | Eleventh Area Army | First General Army |
| KETSU-GO 3 | Central Honshu | Twelfth Area Army | First General Army |
| KETSU-GO 4 | South-Central Honshu | Thirteenth Area Army | First General Army |
| KETSU-GO 5 | Southern Honshu | Fifteenth Area Army | Second General Army |
| KETSU-GO 6 | Kyushu | Sixteenth Area Army | Second General Army |
| KETSU-GO 7 | Korea | Seventeenth Area Army | Imperial General Headquarters}
References
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