“Not part of Japan, but governed by Japan as a temporary trust territory. So, yeah, the Japanese invasion was more like Hitler’s invasion of Austria.”
You are confused. Saipan became part of the US as a trust territory after WWII.
There was NO Japanese invasion of Saipan in WWII. It was the US that invaded Saipan in 1944.
Japan invaded Saipan in 1914 but at that time it was basically just a few farmers and fisherman with no means of defense.
You are confused. Saipan became part of the US as a trust territory after WWII.
He is not confused. The same Wikipedia article you cite (without attribution) in your next post (8) explains:
In 1914, during World War I, the island was captured [from Germany] by the Empire of Japan, which was awarded formal control in 1918 by the League of Nations as part of the South Pacific Mandate.
So, yes: Japan had received a mandate to govern Saipan.
That the U.S. was later (after WW II) awarded a mandate to govern Saipan does not invalidate Vigilanteman's statement.
Regards,