The Japanese begin Operation Ichigo, their last major offensive in China.
One source claims that part of its rationale is to create a land route for supplies from South East Asia to Japan, Korea and Manchukuo because Allied bombers and submarines, sometimes armed with intelligence gathered in Hong Kong by the British Army Aid Group, have rendered the coastal supply route too dangerous.
By the time Ichigo finishes on December 31 it will have achieved some of its objectives and become the last significant Japanese success of the war.
Source:
http://industrialhistoryhk.org/world-war-baag-mateys-allied-attempts-di…