WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Meiji reforms brought great changes both within Japan and in Japan’s place in world affairs. Japan strengthened itself enough to remain a sovereign nation in the face of Western colonizing powers and indeed became a colonizing power itself.

Detailed explanation-2: -Japan declared war in August 1914 and immediately sent troops to fight German forces in German colonial territories in China, including Qingdao (Tsingtao), points in Shandong, and German-held islands in the Pacific. Japan also sent naval ships to assist the Allies in the Mediterranean.

Detailed explanation-3: -Answer and Explanation: Modernization turned Japan into a major world power, able to resist European colonization. It abolished feudal power structures, such as the samurai, and was able to rapidly industrialize and build a powerful military.

Detailed explanation-4: -From 1894, Japan built an extensive empire that included Taiwan, Korea, Manchuria, and parts of northern China. The Japanese regarded this sphere of influence as a political and economic necessity, which prevented foreign states from strangling Japan by blocking its access to raw materials and crucial sea-lanes.