World War II had campaigns occurring in Asia.
World War II . The Empire of Japan aimed to dominate Asia and the Pacific and was already at war with the Republic of China in 1937 , but the world war is generally said to have begun on 1 September 1939 with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and subsequent declarations of war on Germany by France and the United Kingdom . The war continued primarily between the European Axis powers and the coalition of the United Kingdom and the British Commonwealth , with campaigns including the North Africa and East Africa campaigns , the aerial Battle of Britain , the Blitz bombing campaign , the Balkan Campaign as well as the long-running Battle of the Atlantic .