China and Japan dispute over Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands

[LETHALFORCE]

Business 360: Get to grips with the issues affecting world business Blog Archive - The other China islands dispute � - CNN.com Blogs

Hong Kong, China (CNN) – Fishermen detained in disputed waters, an angry call from a neighboring government for an "unconditional and immediate" release as tensions rise.

No, it's not Beijing ire directed at the September arrest of Chinese fishermen by Japanese Coast Guard off the coast of an East China Sea island both countries claim. On Wednesday, the official Vietnam News Agency called for the release of nine Vietnamese fishermen detained by China in the South China Sea last month. China claims the fishermen were using dynamite to catch fish in waters both nation's claim.

The dispute over the Senkaku or Diaoyu islands (what you call the rocks poking out of the sea depends on whether you are Japanese or Chinese) raised tensions to the highest levels in Tokyo and Beijing and spurred nationalist demonstrations in both countries. Talks on sharing undeveloped oil fields in the region were halted along with other economic and cultural exchanges.

The dispute in the South China Sea, however, could prove to be more problematic. Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei and Taiwan all have claims, along with China, on the Spratley and Paracel islands. Tensions have been rising with China's Southeast Asian neighbors in tandem with Beijing's growing economic and military might.

At the heart of both disputes is a term of international maritime law known as "Exclusive Economic Zone," where nations are allowed sole rights to fish and develop resources within 200 nautical miles of a country's shores.

"The South China Sea issue is very interesting," Wu Kang, an analyst at the East-West Center in Hawaii, told me recently. While the Japan-China island in dispute is near potential gas fields, the South China Sea "is currently producing quite a bit of oil and gas," Wu said.

In the background of both China Sea disputes is the U.S. military: The island at the center of the dispute with Tokyo is considered part of Japan in a 1973 U.S. defense agreement. The U.S. conducted joint military maneuvers with Vietnam earlier this year. U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton rattled Beijing when she waded into the territorial dispute at an ASEAN meeting in July, offering to mediate and suggesting a peaceful outcome was in U.S. national interests.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi called Clinton's comments "an attack on China."

Already, the growing fracas over islands is being labeled "Asia's New Cold War." But the heart of the disputes is this: Who will have unfettered access to the bounty lying below the waters?

Kitakojima, Minamikojima of Senkakus

 

[LETHALFORCE]

CHINA – JAPAN – VIETNAM After Senkaku dispute, China Vietnam crisis looms in South China Sea | Spero News

CHINA – JAPAN – VIETNAM After Senkaku dispute, China Vietnam crisis looms in South China Sea
Hanoi wants the immediate and unconditional release of a fishing trawler and its crew seized by China on 11 September for fishing in the disputed waters of the Paracel Islands. Tokyo and Beijing make conciliatory gesture to end worst Sino-Japanese crisis in the past five years.

Tokyo – Two Chinese patrol boats that had been patrolling the Senkaku Islands since 24 September left for their homeport. They had been sent to prevent Japanese Coast Guard boats from intercepting Chinese fishing trawlers. Both China and Japan claim the archipelago, but in recent days have tried to reduce tensions over the matter. The same cannot be said about China and Vietnam. Hanoi today officially called on Chinese authorities to release the crew of a Vietnamese trawler seized by the Chinese Navy on 11 September for fishing near the Paracel Islands.

The departure of the two Chinese vessels, which the Japanese Coast Guard monitored on radar, appears to be an attempt to restore normal relations. Beijing had issued an official protest for the arrest on 8 September of the captain of a Chinese trawler that was fishing in the waters of the Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu for the Chinese).

This was followed by an escalation of retaliatory measures that culminated in China's decision to impose an embargo on sales of global rare-earths, of which it controls 95 per cent. Rare earths are a group of 17 metals used in weapons, hybrid vehicles and laptop computers.

The captain's release did not settle the issue however. In Japan, it drew fire from Japanese nationalist circles on Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan for giving in to Chinese pressures.

Japanese sources said that a brief meeting between Kan and Premier Wen Jiabao on the sidelines of the Asia-Europe summit in Brussels on Monday broke the ice after almost a month-long row. Both leaders reiterated their desire not to damage relations over the islands. In fact, last year, Japan sold 10.2 trillion yen ($122 billion) worth of goods and services to China.

In addition, Japan, which favour of international arbitration, has called on China not to start developing the Shirakaba (Chunxiao in Chinese) natural gas field in the East China Sea.

Meanwhile, Vietnam has called on China to release "immediately" and "unconditionally" a fishing boat and nine crewmembers seized last month near the Paracel Islands, which both countries claim.

China has held the fishermen since 11 September and has said that it would not release them until they pay a fine for fishing with explosives, a claim Vietnam denies.

These tensions are raising the stakes ahead of next week's ASEAN meeting, which will be attended by China, Japan and the United States, as well as India, Australia, South Korea, New Zealand and Russia

The South China Sea covers an area of 3.5 million square kilometres (1.4 million square miles) stretching from Singapore to the Straits of Taiwan. It is the source of several territorial disputes.

 

[Rahul92]

China-Japan Row: A Wake up Call for India?

China-Japan Row: A Wake up Call for India?

By D. S. Rajan

Both the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Japan could finally succeed in diffusing tensions that erupted among them following a collision between a Chinese fishing boat and two Japanese coast guard vessels in waters off the disputed Senkaku islands (called Diao Yu by the Chinese, now administered by Japan) on 8 September 2010. The captain of the Chinese boat has since been released by Tokyo and in an apparent sign of a thaw, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and his Japanese counterpart Naoto Kan have met at Brussels on 4 October 2010 at the sidelines of ASEM meeting, to discuss the contentious issue. The PRC President Hu Jintao is scheduled to visit Tokyo in November 2010 for attending the summit of APEC nations; the two sides may at that time have an opportunity to continue the dialogue.

China's Bullying Tactics

What stands out is the apparent bullying tactics adopted by China against Japan over the Senkakus episode; its manifestations include:

*

Warnings to Japan over release of Chinese boat captain have come from top leadership in China, which rather look unusual. For e.g, Premier Wen Jiabao has himself cautioned that Beijing would take 'unspecified actions' if Tokyo does not correct its mistake.
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The Chinese Foreign Ministry summoned the Japanese Ambassador to the PRC five times for lodging protests.
*

The PRC cancelled the scheduled visit to Japan by its senior parliamentarian, postponed bilateral talks over natural gas exploration in East China Sea, halted exports of rare earth metals essential for development of high technology goods in Japan (later denied by the Chinese Commerce Ministry), suspended plans to increase flights to each other nation and stopped a Chinese government-sponsored visit of 1000 Japanese to the Shanghai World Expo.
*

In apparent retaliation to Japanese detentions of Chinese crew, China's police arrested four employees of the Japanese firm, Fujita Corporation, in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province on charges of their entering a military zone without authorization.
*

Assertions that China has undisputed sovereignty over the Senkakus have come from high political and official levels in the PRC, adding a new sharpness and urgency to the dispute; this may stand in contrast to the advice given by veteran leader Deng Xiaoping in 1978 to leave the issue in the hands of 'wiser' next generations. Notable such assertions include Wen's claim of sovereignty over Senkakus during his talks with Naoto Kan at Brussels and the PRC Foreign Ministry's demand for an official apology from Japan for its "severe infringement of China's territorial sovereignty and personal rights and interests of Chinese citizens".

The Japanese response to China's tough posture on Senkakus has also come from high levels. Prime Minister Naoto Kan has told Wen at Brussels that Japan's sovereignty over Senkakus is beyond question and Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara has stressed that the Chinese boat episode concerns Japanese domestic laws. Also, Tokyo has rejected Beijing's demand for apology.

Reasons for China's Aggressive Approach

Why China chose to up the ante at this point on the Senkakus issue? One can discern four reasons in this regard as mentioned below:

Firstly, since middle 2009, China has been enforcing a foreign policy with a revised strategic focus, giving priority to protecting what the PRC calls its "core interests" – Tibet, Xinjiang, Taiwan, strategic resources and trade routes; analysts seem correct in perceiving that this has resulted in a new assertiveness centering round 'sovereignty' factor in China's external behavior. Evidence to assertiveness include the PRC's growing naval activism in South China Sea and East China Sea, hard line position on the Dalai Lama issue, strong anti-US positions on Yuan exchange rate and Taiwan as well as expansion of influence abroad, for eg. in Pakistan, through use of military and nuclear assistance.

Regarding the specific issue of Senkakus, there appears to be a special meaning to the Chinese claims of sovereignty over the islands, considering that China has emerged as the second largest economy in the world overtaking Japan. The claims seem to be closely linked with one of China's above-mentioned core interests - tapping energy resources. Waters and under the sea bed off Senkakus have high potentials for resources and sovereignty over the islands would enable China to gain base lines for its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), legitimizing its exploitation of resources. As against this, the PRC feels challenged by Japan, which has recently allocated gas exploration rights in East China Sea to private firms, warranting a counter measure from Beijing by way of its shipping drilling equipment to the Chunxiao gas field In East China Sea. Beijing may have reasons to fear that in the event of a conflict with US-supported Japan, its oil supply lines could become vulnerable.

Secondly, from a strategic viewpoint, China is finding the US role as an inhibiting factor for its assertiveness in East China Sea encompassing Senkakus, the Yellow Sea and South China Sea. Of particular concern to Beijing are (i) reiteration of US position recently that the Senkaku islands come under the framework of the 1960 US-Japan Security Treaty that allows the US to protect Japan in the event of any external threat to latter's territory, (ii) Secretary of State Clinton's offer in July 2010 of US mediation to solve South China sea disputes and (iii) President Obama's remarks at the US-ASEAN summit ( New York,27 September 2010) that the US will oppose use or threat of force by any claimant attempting to enforce disputed claims in South China Sea, which seem to target China.

Thirdly, nationalism is a prominent phenomenon in China-Japan relations. China, a victim of Japanese aggression historically, has to accommodate nationalist feelings in its society; this seems to influence Beijing to adopt a stubborn position on the Senkakus issue.

Lastly, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is to elect a new leadership in the forthcoming CCP Congress in 2012; jockeying for positions in the pre-Congress period appears a certainty. As appropriately felt by scholars like Drew Thompson of Nixon Centre in Washington, in such circumstances, Chinese leaders, particularly of the fifth generation which is to take over, may feel that the safest position for them is to be a hard liner on sovereignty-related issues like the Senkakus.

Senkakus- Arunachal: A Comparison

For analysts in India, a look into the similarities or otherwise in the Chinese attitudes towards Senkaku dispute and the Sino-Indian border question, may be useful. Firstly, both Senkakus and Arunachal Pradesh (called Southern Tibet by China) are important to the PRC in terms of national sovereignty and regional strategy. Secondly, Beijing sees a US angle in the East and South China Sea issues. It does not see the same in China-India boundary question, but in general continues to nurture suspicions of US-India collusion. Another common point relates to the presence of resources in Senkakus and Arunachal – oil and gas in East China seas and minerals, coal, zinc etc in Arunachal. Beijing may like to exploit them which is possible only when the PRC exercises sovereignty over them. Fourthly, the PRC does not have a fixed formula to settle the Senkakus problem; it only demands Japan 'to take real actions to add to the content of the mutually beneficial and strategic relationship'. It holds a hawkish position in favour of forcibly throwing out any foreign ship operating off the Senkakus islands as per its Territorial Waters Law adopted in 1992.On the other hand, China supports the principle of 'mutual understanding and mutual accommodation' as basis for solution to the Sino-Indian boundary question. Lastly, China views the border dispute with India as a colonial legacy; in the case of Senkakus, Beijing seems to find a similar US legacy against the fact that it was the US which handed over the administration of Senkakus to Japan in 1971.

Lessons for India

What can India learn from the latest Sino-Japanese friction over Senkakus? Striking first is China's postponement of talks with Japan on reaching a pact providing for joint development of the gas fields in East China Sea, in the wake of Senkakus developments. A Sino-Japanese agreement concluded in June 2008, had provided the basis for such talks. The emerging point is that Beijing can go back on its past commitments if the situation warrants, which should be noted by New Delhi. Chinese position on Sikkim is a classic example. As per information available so far, despite a Sino-Indian basic understanding, dejure recognition of Sikkim as India's state is yet to come.

The PRC's use of civilians to assert its sovereignty over Senkakus, should be another point of interest for India. Chinese fishing vessels are armed, indicating closeness between the PRC Navy and the fishing industry. The cases of Chinese border intrusions into India, similarly intended for asserting sovereignty, need to be examined from this perspective.

Chinese blogs suggest that a particular motive for Chinese action in Senkakus is to monitor Japan's reported increase in the recent period of Ground Self Defence Personnel in that island, assignment of active roles to the country's coast guards to defend the area and augmentation of air cover level for the island. This could be relevant to India's case. Beijing has strong reservations on India's plans to dispatch two mountain divisions and position advanced Su-37 fighter aircraft to defend Arunachal Pradesh. Will there be an increased surveillance from the PRC over India's defence preparedness in the Sino-Indian border, can be a moot question for India.

Japan's economy is dependent on China. The PRC has become Japan's biggest trading partner. Among the countries which export to China, Japan occupies No.1 position now, replacing the US. On the Senkaku issue, Beijing seems to have used its economic leverage against Tokyo. It will be a useful exercise for New Delhi to study the possibilities of China doing the same at times of conflict with India.

Conclusion

Summing up, it can be said that by its aggressive action on the Senkakus issue, China seems to have hurt its own image of being a peacefully rising country with no hegemonic intentions, one which the PRC has so far been carefully nurturing. Also, the growing assertiveness on the part of the PRC is being seen by many as contributing to geo-political changes in the region. More importantly, a fresh opportunity for the US to play an active role in the region seems to have arisen. Reflecting the same, the US Vice-President Biden has urged that his country's improvement of ties with China must go through Tokyo. Regarding Japan, it is expected to give further boost to its alliance with the US to counter Chinese motives. The ASEAN nations may also have begun their rethinking process, as signaled by the emerging support from some among them for accepting US assistance to resolve regional maritime disputes.

India should keep a close watch on China's motivations for being assertive. It cannot afford to lag behind in the matter of protecting its strategic interests, but should at the same time engage China. As correctly pointed out by former Indian Foreign Secretary Mr Shyam Saran, India should diversify its relations with other major powers and expand its diplomatic options in order to manage relations with friends and adversaries alike.

(The writer, Mr D.S.Rajan, is Director, Chennai Centre for China Studies, Chennai, India.Email:[email protected])


http://www.southasiaanalysis.org/\papers41\paper4088.html

 

[ajtr]

China scholars enter Okinawa fray​

By Kosuke Takahashi

TOKYO - To much of the world, the Japanese island of Okinawa is synonymous with vast United States military bases and the troubled relationship between servicemen and locals who want the Americans out. In recent years, however, the specter of anti-Chinese sentiment is also in the air.

Powerful Chinese interests now laying claim to sovereignty of the Okanawa islands - which is located halfway between Kyushu and Taiwan - may increase the antagonism over the disputed Senkaku Islands (known by China as the Diaoyu Islands), which are also administered as part of Okinawa prefecture.

Anti-Chinese sentiment in Japan is high after Beijing's recent display of territorial belligerence over the sovereignty of the islands in the East China Sea spooked Tokyo. Neighboring nations, especially South Korea and Vietnam - once China's tribute states - have already been made to feel more nervous in their disputes



with China over island territories. This is because Beijing has expressed Asian waters as a "core interest" to counter United States moves to gain more influence in the region as a counter to China's rise. China's claims of primacy over the sovereignty of its near waters are encouraging increased discussion among its neighbors regarding naval collaboration.

''It is a bit surprising to see such a move,'' Kurayoshi Takara, professor of the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa, told Asia Times Online. ''Those who claim Okinawa land may reflect increased national prestige and chauvinistic voices in China. Or they may see their chance to claim it, as Japan-US relations have been strained by a row over the relocation of a US Marine base in Okinawa.''

Beijing's recent diplomacy against Norway over the Nobel committee awarding the 2010 Peace Prize to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, shows signs of Beijing further asserting itself on the world stage. China's control of the distribution of rare-earth minerals that play essential roles in numerous industrial processes, including high-technology and military industries, presents another reason why Japan is leery - even as Beijing denied a New York Times report that it was halting exports of the minerals to Japan, the United States and Europe.

Japan-China relations deteriorated to their lowest point in years in the wake of a dispute over Japan's arrest of a Chinese fishing boat captain in early September over a collision with the Japanese Coast Guard near the Senkaku islands. Chinese media reported last week that a fisheries patrol boat set sail for waters near the islands to protect Chinese fishing boats.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who was damaged politically by his handling of the detention of the trawler skipper, came to power this year after his predecessor, Yukio Hatoyama, reneged on an election promise to enter negotiations with the United States to move the American bases off Okinawa.

Chinese scholar affirms Okinawa claim
More than a few Chinese scholars are beginning to claim Okinawa as Chinese land by writing numerous academic papers in Chinese journals, though they are still in a minority among historians.

Xu Yong, noted professor of history at the Beijing University, is among scholars whose work presents the Chinese case. Xu was a member of the Japan-China Joint History Research Committee, set up in 2006 under an agreement between then-prime minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese President Hu Jintao. This was an attempt to salvage bilateral relations that dived during the time of Abe's predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi, and his regular visits to the controversial Yasukuni Shrine memorializing Japan's war dead (including Class A war criminals such as Hideki Tojo).

Xu has said in research papers and recent symposiums that the issue of sovereignty over Okinawa is unsettled because the Qing Dynasty of China did not approve when Japan abolished the Kingdom of Ryukyu and set up Okinawa Prefecture in 1879.

The US put Okinawa under its control after World War II on the Potsdam Declaration without any legitimate basis in international law, Xu has said. He has claimed that the abolition of the kingdom by the Meiji government in 1879, US control over Okinawa even after the war and Okinawa's reversion to Japanese sovereignty from US occupation in 1972, were all illegitimate, which in return affirmed China's right to claim Okinawa.

Anti-Japan protesters also claim Okinawa Chinese scholars are not alone in staking claims for Okinawa. Recent anti-Japan protesters in Chinese cities have made the same claim. For example, a Reuters photo taken on September 16 in Chengdu showed that young anti-Japanese marchers brandished a big Chinese-language banner reading ''Restore Ryukyu! Liberate Okinawa''.

Most Japanese experts on China see the Chinese authorities approval of anti-Japanese protests as an outlet for Chinese people's frustrations toward their society, as they struggle to express freedom of speech, find jobs and buy affordable homes.

A common view of the modern history of Okinawa among Japanese scholars goes like this: Okinawa flourished as an independent trading nation, the Kingdom of Ryukyu, over several centuries, until 1609, when the Shimazu family, feudal lords of the Satsuma domain - today's Kagoshima Prefecture of Kyushu Island - conquered the Ryukyus.

But the Edo government allowed the Ryukyus to trade with the Qing Dynasty of China for its own profit and to collect information on China. In this sense, the Ryukyus were tribute states towards both Japan and China.

But in 1879, the Meiji government formally abolished the Ryukyus and established Okinawa Prefecture, sending a big shock to the Qing Dynasty. Fifteen years later, Japan was victorious in the Sino-Japanese War, and gained control over the Korean Peninsula. Towards the end of World War II, Okinawa became the biggest and most crucial battlefield between the US and Japan.

In his Pulitzer-prize-winning book Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan, American scholar Herbert Bix wrote that the Okinawa battle "cost an estimated 94,000 to 120,000 Japanese combatants and 150,000 to 170,000 non-combatants, including more than 700 Okinawans whom the Japanese army forced to commit collective suicide. American combat losses were approximately 12,500 killed and more than 33,000 wounded; among these casualties were more than 7,000 sailors, reflecting the toll taken by kamikaze [airplane suicide] attacks."

''If the claims by anti-Japanese protesters were justified, the whole modern world order would collapse,'' Takara of the University of the Ryukyus said. ''They have no legitimate argument. And most of all, unlike Tibetans and people in the Hsinchiang Uighur Autonomous Region, we Okinawans have never asserted our independence from Japan. It's really strange to see Chinese people discussing Okinawa independence by ignoring our own opinions.''

Kosuke Takahashi is a Tokyo-based journalist. Besides Asia Times Online, he also writes for Jane's Defence Weekly as Tokyo correspondent.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

China to establish permanent Senkaku patrols

http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201012190107.html

SHANGHAI--China will permanently deploy large fisheries patrol vessels in waters near the disputed Senkaku Islands, a senior Chinese official told The Asahi Shimbun.

The official with the Ministry of Agriculture's Bureau of Fisheries took the unusual step of granting an interview concerning the Senkaku issue to a foreign media outlet on Saturday, saying that China was planning measures to challenge Japan's control of the islands off Okinawa Prefecture.

The official said fisheries patrol vessels of more than 1,000 tons would maintain continuous patrols near the islands, which are known as the Diaoyu Islands in China.

"It is a legitimate right to safeguard China's maritime interests, and the country is unlikely to relax the arrangement in the future," the official, who granted the interview on condition of anonymity, said.

In late November, China deployed the new 2,580-ton Yuzheng 310, one of the few large fisheries patrol vessels in its fleet, to the islands.

The official called the decision to deploy the ship, which was only completed in September, in waters also patrolled by the Japan Coast Guard an "unprecedented and epoch-making step."

The Yuzheng 310 is equipped with two helicopters and is the fastest in China's fisheries patrol fleet, with a top speed of 22 knots.

The Japan Coast Guard has deployed several patrol vessels of more than 1,000 tons to the islands, after the arrest by Japan of a captain of a Chinese fishing trawler who rammed two Coast Guard vessels off the Senkaku Islands led to a major diplomatic row between the two countries in September.

It designated the area a special zone and put its headquarters in charge, rather than offices on Ishigaki island or the 11th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters in Naha under whose jurisdiction the islands fall. Vessels from across Japan have been dispatched to the area.

But a senior Japan Coast Guard official said current arrangement would not be sufficient to respond to constant patrols by China near the islands.

China's 1,300-vessel fisheries surveillance fleet's activities include protecting and managing Chinese fishing boats and monitoring foreign ships in waters over which China claims jurisdiction.

Most of these vessels are relatively small. China only possesses nine patrol ships of more than 1,000 tons. Some are converted naval ships and many are old.

China is planning to build about five new patrol vessels of more than 3,000 tons within five years, but the official said the fleet is not currently equipped to maintain constant surveillance near the Senkaku Islands alone. To deal with the shortage, China will commission private fishing boats to operate as patrol boats in the area in a joint effort by "the government and the private sector."

The official said Beijing intends to press its claims over the islands and disclose details of its surveillance activities to other countries.

The Senkaku Islands are in the East China Sea, to the north of Taiwan, but China is also taking a hard-line on its interests in the South China Sea south of Taiwan. Convoys of Chinese patrol vessels and fishing boats began surveillance there this spring.

The official said China's territorial claims in the South China Sea were a "core national interest" on a par with the issues of Taiwan and Tibet, which China sees as vital to its territorial integrity.

"(The South China Sea) has consistently been one of China's core national interests," said the official. "China had merely not insisted on this to other countries."

This stance had given the international community the mistaken impression that "China is not very keen on its maritime interests," the official said.

China is trying to assert its control in waters within what it calls the "First Island Chain," a series of islands stretching from the main island of Kyushu to Vietnam, and has its eye on underground mineral resources, fisheries and other maritime interests within this "inland sea."

It is building up its navy in line with its increasingly assertive maritime stance, with aircraft carriers and a base for nuclear-powered submarines already under construction.

 

[SHASH2K2]

India should use this opportunity to advance its intrest. We Have seen chinese attitude towards pakistan and we should make full use of this incidence to strengthen the alliance against China. wish our government have balls to take tough decisions.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

India should use this opportunity to advance its intrest. We Have seen chinese attitude towards pakistan and we should make full use of this incidence to strengthen the alliance against China. wish our government have balls to take tough decisions.

we have check another article I posted Australians are also reconsidering USA,Japan,India,Australia Anti-chinese alliance.

 

[SHASH2K2]

we have check another article I posted Australians are also reconsidering USA,Japan,India,Australia Anti-chinese alliance.

After recent visit of Chinese premier its obvious that China is not ready to leave pakistan and are becoming more and more supportive of Pakistan. They have given us a clear message that we dont give a damn about you and your objections . We should also make strategy in response. Even though India was actively involved with ASEAN countries but there is no cooperation on military level .I personally feel that GOI is still not ready to take China head on. India being active partner of countries like JAPAN, Taiwan and S korea will not only strengthen alliance against China but will also help us in countering Chinese threat. Military to military conflict are not possible on large scale but having a big alliance will also help us in Geopolitics .

 

[Tshering22]

Guess the tensions are to rise in east Asia.

 

[ejazr]

China slams Japan's move over Diaoyu Islands

China slams Japan's move over Diaoyu Islands - People's Daily Online

China Tuesday condemned Japan's registration of one of the four islands near the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea as its national asset, slamming Tokyo's move as "unlawful and invalid."

"Any unilateral move surrounding the Diaoyu Islands and its adjacent islets taken by Japan is unlawful and invalid, and cannot change the fact that the islands belong to China," foreign ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said.

"China will continue to take necessary measures to firmly safeguard sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands and the affiliated isles," Hong said, reiterating that the Diaoyu Islands and other affiliated isles have been an inherent part of Chinese territory since ancient times, and China holds indisputable sovereignty over them.

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura announced Monday that one of the four islands near the Diaoyu Islands had been registered as a national asset by Tokyo.

Japanese officials said the registration is unlikely to be applied to the three other islands because "they are owned by civilians," the Kyodo News Agency reported.

Last August, Tokyo placed 23 uninhabited islands under state control, but the four islands near the Diaoyu Islands were exempted out of consideration for China, Kyodo added.

Liu Jiangyong, a deputy director of the Institute of International Studies at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times that Japan's move is part of its recent efforts to further demonstrate its territorial claims in the area.

"It can also be viewed as a probing activity to test Beijing's reaction, as Japan might try the same trick to register other islands in the area as its state assets in the future," Liu said.

The latest move came after Tokyo named 39 isolated, uninhabited islands earlier this month, including some of the Diaoyu Islands, which already drew strong objections from China.

On the following day, China's State Oceanic Administration released standard names and descriptions of the Diaoyu Islands and its affiliated isles.

On March 16, a Chinese maritime surveillance fleet consisting of two patrol vessels arrived in waters near the Diaoyu Islands for a regular patrol, but was followed by a Japan Coast Guard patrol ship.

Despite tensions, Liu said territorial disputes between China and Japan are still manageable.

"We might witness more confrontations between maritime units of the two countries in the waters near the Diaoyu Islands due to reinforced surveillance efforts by both sides, but the use of force is unlikely," Liu said.

 

[LETHALFORCE]

China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

China told Japan Wednesday to respect its "indisputable sovereignty" over islands claimed by both countries in the East China Sea, in the latest territorial row between Beijing and its neighbours.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met Japanese counterpart Koichiro Gemba in Phnom Penh where he "reaffirmed China's principled position" on the islands known as Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese.

"He stressed that Diaoyu Islands and their affiliated islets have always been China's territory since ancient times, over which China has indisputable sovereignty," said a statement from the Chinese delegation.

Japan summoned the Chinese ambassador in Tokyo as three Chinese patrol boats approached the chain of islands, which are privately held by Japanese owners.

The crew of the Chinese vessels, which have since left the islands' immediate vicinity, initially rebuffed Japanese orders to leave, Japanese officials said.

"We are conducting official duty in Chinese waters. Do not interfere. Leave China's territorial waters," the Chinese crews said, according to the Japanese coastguard.

The waters around the disputed islands, which are close to oil reserves, have been the scene of previous rows, including the arrest of a Chinese trawlerman in late 2010.

Wednesday's spat is the latest clash over disputed territory between China and its neighbours that threatens to overshadow attempts to smooth regional relations at an Asian security summit in Cambodia this week.

The 10 members of Southeast Asian regional body ASEAN have been trying to agree a long-stalled "code of conduct" for the South China Sea that would help settle overlapping claims in the resource-rich waterway.

The Philippines is leading a push for ASEAN to unite to persuade China to accept a code based on a UN law on maritime boundaries that would delineate the areas belonging to each country.

Manila also wants ASEAN to condemn a standoff last month between Philippine and Chinese ships over Scarborough Shoal, an outcrop in the South China Sea.

Yang urged Japan to adhere to agreements and understandings with China "in good faith" and said it should return to "the right path of managing differences through dialogue and consultation with the Chinese side."

Japan-China relations this year had seen "some acute problems", the Chinese foreign minister acknowledged.

China's assertiveness over disputed territories in the South China Sea, which is home to vital shipping lanes, is seen by analysts as pushing anxious neighbouring countries closer to the United States.

Beijing also recently angered Vietnam by inviting bids for exploration of oil blocks in contested waters, sparking protests in Hanoi.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Cambodia on Wednesday to press for closer relations with ASEAN, part of Washington's strategy of "pivoting" towards Asia to challenge China's influence.

She is to take part in the ASEAN Regional Forum on Thursday, which brings together 26 nations and the European Union.

 

[Zero_Wing]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

again china man what a country

 

[Ray]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

China should annex Japan without delay.

Nasty chaps!

End of story!

China will be über alles!

 

[Tolaha]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

China told Japan Wednesday to respect its "indisputable sovereignty" over islands claimed by both countries in the East China Sea, in the latest territorial row between Beijing and its neighbours.

Have the Chinese ever claimed "disputable sovereignty" over any region that they want to swallow up?

 

[LETHALFORCE]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

Have the Chinese ever claimed "disputable sovereignty" over any region that they want to swallow up?

If other countries started the same historical precedence excuse it would leave only a
few countries in the world. The Chinese propaganda is strong and will lead to wars soon.

 

[Ray]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

Japanese PM's remarks 'irresponsible'

BEIJING - A Foreign Ministry spokesman on Friday expressed China's "grave concern" and "strong displeasure" over the "highly irresponsible remarks" made by Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda regarding the Diaoyu Islands.

"Nothing can shake China's firm resolve and determination to safeguard its territorial sovereignty," spokesman Hong Lei said, adding that the Diaoyu Islands and its affiliated islands have been part of China's inherent territory since ancient times.

China has taken note of the willingness expressed by Japan to solve the issue through diplomatic efforts, Hong said.

"Japan should make concrete efforts to properly solve relevant issues while fully considering the overall condition of Japan-China relations," Hong said.

Previous media reports stated that Noda said the Japanese government would use force if necessary to resolutely respond to any illegal activity that occurs within Japan's borders, including the "Senkaku Islands," as the Diaoyu Islands are referred to in Japan.

Japanese PM's remarks 'irresponsible' |Politics |chinadaily.com.cn

 

[Zebra]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

http://images.smh.com.au/file/2012/08/01/3518277/CSIS%2520Independent%2520Assessment.pdf

 

[fzaq]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

i wonder when will china have a dispute over it's ally north korea

 

[s002wjh]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

how is china fault when south korean has dispute with japan as well. it has to do with japan imperlism before wwii. there is a reason its call dispute

 

[no smoking]

Re: China, Japan in new spat over disputed islands

how is china fault when south korean has dispute with japan as well. it has to do with japan imperlism before wwii. there is a reason its call dispute

Well, because it is China. Don't you get it?