southern front as Commander in Chief of the Burma Area Army. Arriving in Burma he was convinced to support Renya Mutaguchi, commander of the 15th Army and an old comrade-in-arms, in his plans for a pre-emptive attack against British forces at Imphal. The goal of this offensive was to disrupt the Allied build-up in that area, and perhaps, if all went well, make way for an invasion of Assam and British India. This plan was strongly opposed by most of Kawabe's commanders as well as Masazumi Inada, Vice-Chief of Staff of the Southern Expeditionary Army based in Singapore. Especially the difficult supply situation was thought to be a major obstacle. However, in October 1943, Inada was removed from his position due to a diplomatic incident with Thailand and in December the plan was approved by General Hisaichi Terauchi and Prime Minister Hideki Tōjō on the understanding the operation would be a purely defensive one. Mutaguchi's plan was a tremendous disaster for the Japanese army, resulting in the highest casualties of any operation in the entire war, and the loss of Burma. During the later stages of this offensive, Kawabe was bedridden with amoebic dysentery. Kawabe was relieved by General Heitarō Kimura on 30 August 1944 and returned to Japan. Kawabe served for a short time on the Supreme War Council. In the final stages of the war, experienced commanders were needed to organize the defenses of the Japanese home islands. Kawabe became Commander in Chief of the Central District Army on 1 December 1944, he also became Commander in Chief of the 15th Area Army from its formation on 1 February 1945 to 7 April 1945. Kawabe was promoted to full general in March 1945. On 8 April 1945 he took command of Air General Army, consisting of the remaining air units in Japan, Korea and Okinawa, for the final defense of Japan against the anticipated Allied invasion. After the surrender of Japan, Kawabe was retained by the SCAP occupation authorities to assist with the demobilization of the Japanese military, replacing Kenji Doihara after the latter was arrested and tried for war crimes. Kawabe retired at the end of 1945 and died 20 years later. See also Organization of Japanese Expeditionary forces in China'' References Books External links World Statesmen - Myanmar (Burma) Notes Imperial Japanese Army generals of World War II Japanese generals Japanese military personnel of World War