ABSTRACT
The American Neutrality Act of 1937 went into effect, placing an immediate embargo on arms sales, much to the distress of Britain and France. The fall of France and the German threat to Britain in the summer of 1940 caused many Americans to fear that Germany might attack the United States if the Nazis should defeat Britain and gain control of the British and French fleets. America First Committee, founded in the fall of 1940, attempted to unite all the disparate groups. In January 1941, American military and naval leaders met with their British counterparts in Washington to explore contingency plans in case the United States should enter the war. War came to America not through developments in the Atlantic but because of growing friction between the United States and Japan in the Pacific. In return for American relaxation of the trade embargo, Konoye offered to withdraw Japanese troops from Indochina after the conclusion of the war with China.
