Japan was quickly on the path to destruction. (Grant, 1998). Of course, the Allies ignored this for the reason that dropping the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki would intimidate Russia. Had they truly been considering saving more lives and bringing a quick end to the war in Japan, they would have simply waited them out without the major loss of life seen at both Hiroshima and Nagasaki. .
At the Yalta conference, Franklin Delano Roosevelt asked Josef Stalin for Russian support in the war with Japan. (Claypool, 1984) "In return for Russian Support against Japan, Roosevelt agreed to terms that some historians feel helped create more tension between the two countries because it gave Russia too much power in world affairs." (Claypool, 1984, Pg. 53) At the time, Roosevelt was not confident that the United States could win the war easily without Russian support. He simply assumed that Japan would have to be invaded (Claypool, 1984). After Roosevelt's death on April 12, 1945, Truman was sworn in as President of the United States (Claypool, 1984). As situations developed and progress on the atomic bomb continued to increase, Truman felt that a Russian invasion of Japanese territory might not be necessary. "If the atomic bomb was effective, there was no need to have the Russians invade Manchuria. . . There was always the possibility that a Russian invasion might mean communist rule after the war." (Claypool, 1984, Pg. 78) It was quite apparent, in fact, to many world leaders that the United States did not want Russian intervention once work on the atomic bomb had been completed. In fact, Prime Minister Winston Churchill has been quoted writing: ""It is quite clear that the United States do not at the present time desire Russian participation in the war against Japan."" (Claypool, 1984, Pg. 78) As World War II came to a closure, two new superpowers emerged: the United States and the Soviet Union.
