In 1938 and 1939, the Kwantung Army occupying Manchuria was severely defeated by the Red Army over a border dispute. Eager to score a victory, the Imperial Japanese Army was engaged in the border dispute near Khasan, where the borders of Manchuria, Korea and Siberia meet.
Allied planners had seriously underestimated the strength and effectiveness of Japanese Forces. Allied opinion held that they could not shoot straight, since many Japanese were nearsighted.
