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Could the Australian, British, Dutch and American (ABDA) have occupied, fortified or reinforced any of Rabaul (in New Britain), Guadalcanal (in the Solomons), New Guinea, Tarawa (in the Gilberts) or Sumatra before the Japanese southward advance of December 1941?

If they had tried, would it work out better for them than their OTL eve-of-war deployments or not?

Detailed poll follows.

Additional rules, assume the ABDA powers can deploy any forces they had existing in 40 or 41, especially anywhere in the PTO, wherever in each other's territory they wish.

Politics might block this in some cases (that's option f), but examples from the Atlantic War exist of the U.S. occupying/reinforcing/fortifying non-U.S. territories prior to declared war, between the U.S. occupations of Greenland, Iceland and the Caribbean bases.

I would imagine the Americans being potential candidates to preemptively occupy Rabaul, Guadalcanal or Tarawa, the Australians being potential candidates to preemptively occupy even the Dutch part of New Guinea and the British being a potential candidate to preemptively occupy Sumatra [in all cases with host country permission].

What do you think?
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