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the pacific ocean is closer but Washington d.c. is the closest
The last two islands captured in the Pacific in 1945, were also the bloodiest; Iwo Jima & Okinawa.
The goal of the United States was to defeat the Japanese. This meant the removal of the Japanese from many islands in the Pacific Ocean, the destruction of the Japanese Navy, and the surrender of Japan.
The islands in the Pacific were important for both the Japanese and the Americans to maintain control of. Whoever was effectively able to control the islands in the Pacific could essentially control the shipping routes of the Pacific Great Circle.
The ability to strike back at Japanese forces and retake all the Pacific islands that Japan had invaded.