Why China Is Demanding These Japanese Islands

RealLifeLore

Island Overview and Geographic Context

Eight tiny islands/rocks in East China Sea totaling 6.5 square kilometers
Size comparable to moderately large city airport
Uninhabited except for radar station, no permanent residents
Called Senkaku Islands by Japan, Diaoyu Islands by China, Tiaoyutai Islands by Taiwan
Currently administered by Japan but claimed by China and Taiwan as core national interests

Chinese Claims:
- Discovered during Ming Dynasty in 1372
- All major islets identified/named by 1534 in Ming Dynasty book
- Marked sea frontier of Ming/Qing dynasties as part of Taiwan
- No archaeological evidence of Chinese habitation found
Japanese Claims:
- 1885: Japanese survey found islands uninhabited, qualified as Terra nullius
- 1895: Formally incorporated into Okinawa prefecture months before Treaty of Shimonoseki
- Argues incorporation was separate legal event from Taiwan annexation
Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895):
- Article 2B: Taiwan "together with all Islands appertaining or belonging" ceded to Japan
- China/Taiwan argue disputed islands were part of Taiwan package
- Japan argues they were separately incorporated under Terra nullius
Post-WWII Complications:
- 1951 Treaty of San Francisco: Japan renounced claims to Taiwan and associated islands
- China/Taiwan claim disputed islands should have been returned
- Japan maintains islands were never part of Taiwan

US occupied Okinawa prefecture 1945-1972, including disputed islands
China never challenged US decision to link islands with Okinawa during this period
1968: UN survey revealed potential oil reserves in area
1971: China made first formal claims to Diaoyu Islands
1972: US transferred islands back to Japan as part of Okinawa
Chinese maps from 1960s-1969 showed islands as Japanese territory (Senkaku)

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Dispute:
- East China Sea only 360 nautical miles wide
- Japan claims median line dividing Chinese/Japanese EEZs
- China claims EEZ extends to Okinawa Trough based on continental shelf argument
- Disputed area: ~40,000 square kilometers (size of Netherlands)
Fishing Resources:
- 5% of world's fish caught in East China Sea since 1950
- Total value: $300 billion over time span
- One of world's most productive fishing regions
Energy Resources:
- US estimates: 200 million barrels oil, 60 billion cubic feet natural gas
- China/Japan are world's #1 and #4 hydrocarbon importers respectively
- Chinese built offshore drilling platforms west of Japanese median line
- Joint development field since 2008

Energy Security Concerns:
- Both countries import oil/gas from Persian Gulf via Indian Ocean → South China Sea → East China Sea
- Control of islands could threaten opponent's critical import routes
- Japanese fear Chinese militarization like South China Sea islands
- Chinese fear Japanese/US militarization threatening their supply lines
Current Military Posture:
- Japan maintains peaceful approach, no military use of islands
- China continuously tests Japanese resolve with naval/air incursions

2012 Nationalization:
- Japanese government purchased islands from private owners
- Sparked mass anti-Japanese protests across ~100 Chinese cities
- Chinese naval vessel incursions skyrocketed afterward
Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ):
- China implemented ADIZ over East China Sea including disputed islands
- Overlaps with Japanese, South Korean, and Taiwanese ADIZ
- Multiple nations' aircraft repeatedly violate conflicting zones
- US warned commercial airlines to avoid area
2016: Japan constructed radar station on one island to detect Chinese aircraft
2021: China passed law authorizing Coast Guard lethal force in disputed waters
US Position:
- Affirms islands are part of Japan
- Fall under 1960 US-Japan mutual defense treaty
- US guaranteed to defend Japan if islands attacked

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