<P> The official British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF), composed of Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand personnel, was deployed on February 21, 1946 . While US forces were responsible for the overall occupation, BCOF was responsible for supervising demilitarization and the disposal of Japan's war industries . BCOF was also responsible for occupation of several western prefectures and had its headquarters at Kure . At its peak, the force numbered about 40,000 personnel . During 1947, BCOF began to decrease its activities in Japan, and officially wound up in 1951 . </P> <P> The Far Eastern Commission and Allied Council for Japan were also established to supervise the occupation of Japan . The establishment of a multilateral Allied council for Japan was proposed by the Soviet government as early as September 1945, and was supported partially by the British, French and Chinese governments . </P> <P> Japan's postwar constitution, adopted under Allied supervision, included a "Peace Clause", Article 9, which renounced war and banned Japan from maintaining any armed forces . This clause was not imposed by the Allies: rather, it was the work of the Japanese government itself, and according to most sources, was the work of Prime Minister Kijūrō Shidehara . The clause was intended to prevent the country from ever becoming an aggressive military power again . However, the United States was soon pressuring Japan to rebuild its army as a bulwark against communism in Asia after the Chinese Civil War and the Korean War . During the Korean War, US forces largely withdrew from Japan to redeploy to South Korea, leaving the country almost totally defenseless . As a result, a new National Police Reserve armed with military - grade weaponry was created . In 1954, the Japan Self - Defense Forces were founded as a full - scale military in all but name . To avoid breaking the constitutional prohibition on military force, they were officially founded as an extension to the police force . Traditionally, Japan's military spending has been restricted to about 1% of its gross national product, though this is by popular practice, not law, and has fluctuated up and down from this figure . Prime Ministers Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe, among others, have tried to repeal or amend the clause . The JSDF slowly grew to considerable strength, and Japan now has the eighth largest military budget in the world . </P> <P> All the major sectors of the Japanese society, government, and economy were liberalized in the first few years and won strong support from liberals in Japan . Historians emphasize the similarity to the American New Deal programs of the 1930s . Moore and Robinson note that, "New Deal liberalism seemed natural, even to conservative Republicans such as MacArthur and Whitney ." The issuing of the Removal of Restrictions on Political, Civil, and Religious Liberties directive by SCAP on October 4, 1945, led to the abolishment of the Peace Preservation Law and the release of all political prisoners . </P>

What was a goal of the allied occupation of japan