Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan Each Had Eyes on Madagascar While no formal operations between the two Axis powers materialized, each had designs on the French colony island of Madagascar. During World War II, Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan were allies, two members of the Axis Powers. However, where the Allied powers actively worked together and coordinated efforts, there was little actual cooperation between Germany and Japan. Never once did their respective forces conduct an operation together, and about the closest actual cooperation was the Monsun Gruppe , a force of German U-Boats that operated in the Indian Ocean from...