Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands

News Shaping Japan Today

Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands

Article No. 7

Source Article: “Japan asks China to hold ‘two-plus-two’ security talks in hopes of de-escalating dispute over Senkakus”

The Senkaku/Diaoyu islands have been a primary source of political contention between Japan and China (and Taiwan) for decades. The countries have disputed for many years over territorial rights to the groups of seven uninhabited islands, yet despite this long history of friction, Japan has recently communicated interest to China in de-escalating the dispute over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands. Japan’s initiative to begin talk with China regarding this issue follow the recent trend we have remarked on in previous classes in which Japan and China both have taken steps to de-escalate tensions between the two countries in light of an unstable American leader and the uncertainty of Northeast Asia’s security. It makes sense that perceived coldness on behalf of America towards Japan would prompt the country to explore its relationships with other countries, specifically China, and we have seen this happen historically as well. What makes this story so interesting, however, is the issue that Japan had indicated it is willing to make concessions on, since it has so aggressively defended and asserted its claim to the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands for decades. It is possible Japan has no serious intentions of compromising with China, but if it does, a closer alignment with China could spell future complications for the Japanese-American alliance. Further, it is interesting and important to not that Taiwan has been (presumably) kept out of these negotiations/discussions, likely since any formal recognition of Taiwan in this ordeal by Japan would upset the Chinese.

As for the political feasibility of Japan and China coming to a compromise on the Senkaku/Diaoyu island issue, I personally do not see this as something realistically happening. Even if Japan were actually willing to concede some of its previous territorial claims to the islands, I do not predict China would agree to anything less than complete international claim over the contested regions. Given China’s territorial assertion over the past decade in the South China Sea (claiming of islands, establishment of military bases and industrial outposts on artificial islands they created in disputed waters) for its significance as a trade route, I would imagine that the behavior and mentality towards the oil-rich islands in the East China Sea are similar.

Supplementary Articles:

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/explained/article/2187161/explained-diaoyu/senkaku-islands-dispute, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-11341139, https://www.cfr.org/interactive/global-conflict-tracker/conflict/territorial-disputes-south-china-sea