Battle of Lake Khasan

Overview

The Battle of Lake Khasan, also known as the Changkufeng Incident, was an attempted military incursion by Manchukuo, a Japanese puppet state, into territory claimed and controlled by the Soviet Union. The incursion, which occurred from 29 July to 11 August 1938, was founded in the Japanese belief that the Soviet Union had misinterpreted the demarcation of the boundary based on the Treaty of Peking between Imperial Russia and Qing China, and had subsequently tampered with the demarcation markers. Japanese forces occupied the disputed area but withdrew after heavy fighting and a diplomatic settlement.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Lake Khasan was an incursion by Manchukuo forces, acting as a Japanese proxy, into territory the Soviet Union held along a boundary contested since the Treaty of Peking between Imperial Russia and Qing China. Japan's position rested on the claim that the Soviets had misread the demarcation and altered boundary markers. Despite occupying the disputed area, Japanese forces withdrew after heavy fighting and a diplomatic settlement, leaving the Soviet territorial position intact. The engagement was one of several armed tests of Soviet resolve along the Manchukuoan frontier during the 1930s, and the combined casualty figures — roughly 3,279 Soviet and 3,000 Japanese losses from forces of markedly unequal size — indicated the intensity of resistance the Soviets were prepared to mount. The outcome demonstrated that border provocations short of a full offensive could be resolved through a combination of military pressure and diplomacy without triggering broader war, a pattern relevant to the larger Soviet–Japanese border conflict that culminated at Khalkhin Gol the following year.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (5)