Stimson Doctrine

United States history

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July 14, 2026

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The Stimson Doctrine was a United States policy established by Secretary of State Henry L. Stimson in 1932. It declared that the U.S. would not recognize any territorial changes brought about by force, specifically in response to Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931. This policy was a response to the Mukden Incident, where Japanese troops seized the city of Mukden, leading to the occupation of Manchuria. The doctrine aimed to uphold international law and the Pact of Paris but ultimately contributed to Japan's international isolation and was seen as a step toward World War II.12

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20th-century international relations
Failures of the League
…contented itself with propounding the Stimson Doctrine, by which Washington merely refused to recognize changes born of aggression. Unperturbed, the Japanese prompted local collaborationists to proclaim, on February 18, 1932, an independent state of Manchukuo, in effect a Japanese protectorate. The Lytton Commission reported in October, scolding the Chinese for…
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…contented itself with propounding the Stimson Doctrine, by which Washington merely refused to recognize changes born of aggression. Unperturbed, the Japanese prompted local collaborationists to proclaim, on February 18, 1932, an independent state of Manchukuo, in effect a Japanese protectorate. The Lytton Commission reported in October, scolding the Chinese for…
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Henry L. Stimson
…afterward became known as the Stimson Doctrine.
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…afterward became known as the Stimson Doctrine.
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conquest
…what became known as the Stimson Doctrine, enunciated in January 1932 by U.S. Secretary of State Henry L. Stimson and subsequently affirmed by the assembly of the League of Nations and by several conferences of the American republics. The Draft Declaration on Rights and Duties of States, formulated in 1949…
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…what became known as the Stimson Doctrine, enunciated in January 1932 by U.S. Secretary of State Henry L. Stimson and subsequently affirmed by the assembly of the League of Nations and by several conferences of the American republics. The Draft Declaration on Rights and Duties of States, formulated in 1949…
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