Japanese intellectuals of the late-Meiji period espoused the concept of a "line of advantage," an idea that would help to justify Japanese foreign policy at the turn of the century. According to this principle, embodied in the slogan “fukoku kyohei”, Japan would be vulnerable to aggressive Western imperialism unless it extended a line of advantage beyond its borders which would help to repel foreign incursions and strengthen the Japanese economy. The war with China made Japan the world's first Eastern, modern imperial power, and the war with Russia proved that a Western power could be defeated by an Eastern state (Wikipedia). The result of these two wars made Japan the most powerful nation is Asia. In 1910, Japanese economy grows dramatically under a democratic system of government known as Taisho Democracy. The growth of economy and the arrogance of national pride made Japan a destructive power during mid-twentieth century, which later enter the World War II.
However, Japan did not get much luck in World War II. As a result of its defeat at the end of World War II, Japan lost all of its overseas possessions and retained only the home islands. The World War II nearly destroyed the Japanese economy; however, Japan survived under the deep recession. The disappointment from the war enforces the Japanese Government to focus more on its development in the economy. After the war was over, many of the wartime companies and much of the technology used during the war were converted