Did Japan Try to Buy Macao in 1935?

Did the Japanese try to buy Macao in 1935? a Hong Kong-based stringer (looking for a quick pay day maybe?) for the London Daily Express caught the whiff of a story that Tokyo was willing to offer a million bucks (which would be about US$18million today I think – quite a bargain!) for the Portuguese territory. A further follow up story reported that a Japanese delegation was on its way to Lisbon to make the offer to the Portuguese government. Another journalist, digging a little deeper, discovered that a major stumbling block was that China had to give its approval to any sale. Now those that hate Chiang Kai-shek would probably argue that he’d take the deal and the money and buy the wife a new frock; others might suggest it would never be approved. Still others thought that, as Japan was massing troops across Asia and looked likely to attack (as it did a couple of years later), perhaps Portugal/China should sell while the going was good!

But it seems Portugal said no to the offer, if indeed it ever was really made….However, there was the desire by Tokyo to buy, or more likely try to lease, Macao as an air base or at least to have landing rights. Pan-American Airways was trying to negotiate a similar deal with Macao being the eastern end of its soon-to-be inaugurated China Clipper service. The Pan-American deal never materialised either eventually.

A Macanese street – apparently not for sale