[Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere]

Japanese map of the western Pacific showing Japanese The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere (Japanese: 大東亜共栄圏 Hepburn: Dai Tōa Kyōeiken).

The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere was an imperial concept created and promulgated for occupied Asian populations during 1930–1945 by the Empire of Japan. It extended greater than East Asia and promoted the cultural and economic unity of Northeast Asians, Southeast Asians, South Asians and Oceanians. It also declared the intention to create a self-sufficient “bloc of Asian nations led by the Japanese and free of Western powers”. It was announced in a radio address entitled “The International Situation and Japan’s Position” by Foreign Minister Hachirō Arita on 29 June 1940.

The intent and practical implementation of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere varied widely depending on the group and government department involved. Policy theorists who conceived it, as well as the vast majority of the Japanese population at large, largely saw it for its pan-Asian ideals of freedom and independence from Western colonial oppression. In practice, however, it was frequently corrupted by militarists and nationalists, who saw an effective policy vehicle through which to strengthen Japan’s position and advance its dominance within Asia.