Treaty Faction
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The Treaty Faction (条約派 jōyaku-ha) in the Imperial Japanese Navy of the 1920s realized the Japanese economy could not support a large naval expansion. It argued that the current treaty limitations would serve Japan for the time being.
Coupled with friction with the civilian government on a variety of topics, the army became more isolated and more of a power unto itself. The navy was faring better, but not by much. Faced with the limits imposed by the Washington Armaments Conference of 1921, the navy was also split into two factions, the Treaty Faction and the Fleet Faction. The Treaty Faction accepted the limitations imposed by the Washington Armaments Conference, while the Fleet Faction pressed for unlimited naval growth to build the mightiest navy in the world and challenge the supremacy of powers such as the United States and the USSR.
For several years, the government sided with the Treaty Faction, which won a public relations victory. During this time, the civilian government kept radicals in the military, and those scheming against the government, in check.
The "han-yohaku ha" (Anti London Treaty Faction, as the radical branch of the Treaty Faction) set up "Tai nan-yo Hosaku Kenkiu Kai" (Study Committee for Policies towards the South Seas) to study military and economic expansion to Southern Areas.
