Hi! There have been some interesting discussions on this; hopefully some of these will be useful to you. They've been organized roughly chronologically. They're all archived, so if you have follow-up questions for any of the users, just ask them here and tag their username to notify them

• Why did Japan 'need' to attack Pearl Harbor when they wanted to get the oil fields in the pacific, Indonesia, etc... ? - a long discussion thread featuring /u/thefourthmaninaboat among others

• What options (other than military) did Japan have in 1941 to counter the trade embargo placed on it by the US and other nations? - featuring /u/Jizzlobber58

• Prior to attacking Pearl Harbor, Japan had seized thousands of miles of territory, yet American embargo especially oil has often been mentioned as the driving force behind the attack/ Is that accurate? - featuring /u/DemonCraps

• How Did Japan Keep Their War Effort Going After Being Cut Off from Oil After Losing the East Indies in World War II? - featuring /u/thefourthmaninaboat and /u/kieslowskifan

• Why were the Japanese unsuccessful in getting oil out of Malaysia in WWII?