Features of Japan's Сolonial Policy in the End of XIX - First Half of XX Centuries in Taiwan and Sakhalin

Japanese colonial expansion officially started in the end of 19th century after the Qing dynasty of China ceded the island of Taiwan to Japanese Empire in 1895. In 1905, as a part of the peace treaty after Japan’s victory over Russian Empire, it took control of the southern part of Sakhalin. Both northward and southward expansions were a part of the imperial grand plan of expanding Japanese sphere of influence in the East and Southeast Asia. However, the existing literature lacks comparative analysis of the Japanese colonial administration differences regarding these two regions. This research aims to identify the key factors that made Taiwan and Sakhalin to be included in the primary sphere of interest of Japanese Empire and define the main rationale behind their addition to Japan. In this paper, it will be done by comparing the features of Japanese colonial administration policies and the differences between Taiwan and Sakhalin, such as the ethnic composition of the population, natural resources, geographic location, etc. Keywords: Taiwan, Sakhalin, Karafuto, colonialism, Japanese Empire