Japan in the 1930s and early 1940s had a large population, an advanced economy, a powerful military, and very few natural resources. Its leadership thought the solution to the resource problem was obvious–create an empire in China. The Americans ultimately responded to the Japanese aggression and atrocities by imposing an oil embargo. The Japanese consequently had a choice: give up their dreams of empire in China or go for broke, attack the Americans, and seize as many resources as possible in the process.
As we know only too well, they decided to launch surprise attacks against a variety of targets in the Pacific and Asia in order to establish dominion over their neighborhood and solve their resource issues. Is this ringing any bells for you?