Kokutai is a concept in the Japanese language translatable as "system of government", "sovereignty", "national identity, essence and character", "national polity; body politic; national entity; basis for the Emperor's sovereignty; Japanese constitution" or nation.

The Imperial Rule Assistance Association , or Imperial Aid Association, was the Empire of Japan's ruling political organization during much of Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. It was created by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on 12 October 1940, to promote the goals of his Shintaisei movement. It evolved into a "statist" ruling political party which aimed at removing sectionalism and factionalism from politics and economics in the Empire of Japan, creating a totalitarian one-party state in order to maximize the efficiency of Japan's total war effort in China. When the organization was launched officially, Konoe was hailed as a "political savior" of a nation in chaos; however, internal divisions soon appeared.