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The U.S. Role in the Sino-Japanese Dispute over the Diaoyu (Senkaku) Islands, 1945–1971*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2009

Jean-Marc F. Blanchard
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Extract

In 1996, the Sino-Japanese conflict over the Diaoyu (Senkaku) Islands intensified to the point where the American mass circulation periodical Time asked: “Will the next Asian war be fought over a few tiny islands?” That such a question could be asked seems incredible given that the Diaoyu Islands, which lie north-east of Taiwan and west of Okinawa, consist of only five small islands and three rocky outcroppings with a total landmass of no more than 7 square kilometres or 3 square miles. Apart from their miniscule size, the islands are uninhabited, are incapable of supporting human habitation for an extended period of time and are unlikely to support any economic life of their own from indigenous resources.

Type
Research Article
Information
The China Quarterly , Volume 161 , March 2000 , pp. 95 - 123
Copyright
Copyright © The China Quarterly 2000

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References

1. “In an ocean of controversy,” Time, 7 10 1996, p. 30.Google Scholar

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12. Even though an agreed minute to the 1971 reversion treaty incorporated the Diaoyu Islands as part of the Ryūkyū Islands being returned to Japan, the U.S. government took the position that “this treaty does not affect the legal status of those islands at all.” See United States Senate, Committee on Foreign Relations, Okinawa Reversion Treaty. Hearings, 92nd Congress, first session, Ex. J. 92–1, October 27–29, 1971 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. GPO, 1971), p. 11.Google Scholar

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14. This does not imply that the Japanese do not have a valid legal claim.

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130. Ibid. pp. 80–81, 177–181; and Schaller, , Altered States, pp. 205–206Google Scholar. In August and September, the U.S. contemplated asking Japan for a quid pro quo in exchange for returning the islands to Japan. Buckley, , U.S.—Japan Alliance Diplomacy, p. 114Google Scholar; and Schaller, , Altered States, p. 204.Google Scholar

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134. United States Senate, Okinawa Reversion Treaty, p. 11.Google Scholar

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