What specifically did the western powers want from China and Japan respectively, and why? -

What the US and the European powers want from China? From Japan? What changes in each country s governments occurred because of the opening of their respective ports for trade with the West? Thanks so much....I m so confused :(

I am assuming your time period is the 1800s or the 19th century... Western powers wanted two things from China and Japan. First, they wanted raw materials, such as silk, iron and coal. They wanted the items European and American factories needed to produce finished goods. China, in particular, was rich in raw materials. Secondly, they wanted the Japanese and Chinese markets opened to finished goods from Western factories. You are looking at some very large populations that have some wealth to purchase Western goods. EDIT: Remember that the 18th and 19th centuries were the height of Western racism. Asians, despite having civilizations that predated the Roman Empire, were considered inferior people, less than human, and savages by Westerners, including Americans. Westerners considered their duty before God to spread European/American civilization and mores across the globe. Because of this, Westerners would not have been looking at the Japanese for military assistance. In fact, their nightmare was an Asian or other native military that was able to fight with Western forces. And, we see this attitude lasting through World War 2. There was shock, for instance, when the Japanese navy destroyed a Russian fleet and defeated the Russian army in 1904-1905. In World War 1, England and France tried to keep Japan neutral despite its desire to enter the war on their side. Treaties signed after the war tried to limit the size of Japan s navy and army, despite Japan s siding with the allies. And one of the reasons that the United States was caught with its pants down at Pearl Harbor was the thought that the Japanese did not have the intellect or military skills to launch an attack against the island. England, France or Germany, maybe, but Japan no way. Further, until Commodore Oliver Perry opened Japan to Western trading, the nation was closed to outsiders and had been for about 1,000 years. There was very little information about Japan. So, no one knew anything about the Japanese being a good military ally. The only thing that was really known about Japan was that it had a large population, many with considerable wealth and was virgin territory for Western goods. So, the primary reason for opening Japan was trade, not a potential military alliance.

What exactly what Spain did to the Americas----Claims the lands as theirs; Grab the gold and silver. Japan quickly see that. China did not.