Japan viewed the Dutch East Indies as a prize for its vast quantities of natural resources.

In 1941, the Dutch East Indies was a major producer of: rubber, oil, quinine, coffee, tea, cacao, coconut, sugar, pepper, and tobacco.

The Netherlands had a fleet of vessels in Dutch East Indies in 1942, many were lost in the war and some fled to Australia.

K VIII-class submarine K-VII, K-VIII, K-IX, K-X, K-XI, K-XII, K-XIII, K-XIV, K-XVI, K XVIII and O-XIX.

[30] Major Dutch East Indies seaports included: Makassar, Tangerang, Batavia (Jakarta), Semarang Tegal and Surabaya.

Many deaths were caused by the diversion of food, such as rice, to Japanese troops from the Dutch East Indies population.

Between 4 and 10 million Indonesians from the Dutch East Indies were turned into Japan's forced labourers, called romusha.

Four million died in the Dutch East Indies as a result of famine and forced labour.