Editing Battle of Peleliu (section)

==Background==
By 1944, American victories in the Southwest and [[Pacific Ocean Areas|Central Pacific]] had brought the war closer to Japan, with American bombers able to strike at the [[Japanese archipelago|Japanese main islands]] from air bases secured during the [[Mariana and Palau Islands campaign|Mariana Islands campaign]] (June–August 1944). There was disagreement among the [[Joint Chiefs of Staff|U.S. Joint Chiefs]] over two proposed strategies to defeat the Japanese Empire. The strategy proposed by General [[Douglas MacArthur]] called for the recapture of the [[Philippines]], followed by the capture of [[Okinawa Island|Okinawa]], then an [[Operation Downfall|attack on the Japanese home islands]]. Admiral [[Chester W. Nimitz]] favored a more direct strategy of bypassing the Philippines but seizing Okinawa and [[Taiwan]] as [[staging area]]s to an attack on the Japanese mainland, followed by the future invasion of Japan's southernmost islands.<ref>{{cite web|title=Battle of Peleliu|url=http://www.history.com/topics/battle-of-peleliu|work=History Channel|access-date=January 14, 2014}}</ref>

The [[1st Marine Division]] had already been chosen to make the assault. [[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] traveled to [[Naval Station Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]] to personally meet both MacArthur and Nimitz and hear their arguments. In the end, MacArthur's strategy was chosen. However, before MacArthur could retake the Philippines, the [[Geography of Palau|Palau Islands]], specifically Peleliu and [[Angaur]], were to be neutralized and an airfield built to protect the southern flank of MacArthur's planned landings on the Philippines.