View source for Senkaku Islands

{{Redirect|Diaoyutai|the Chinese state guesthouse|Diaoyutai State Guesthouse}}
{{pp-semi|small=yes}}
{{Infobox Disputed Islands
| plural = yes
| name             = Senkaku Islands
| image name       = Diaoyutai senkaku.png
| image caption    = Location of the islands (inside red rectangle and inset). <br />
# Uotsuri Jima/Diaoyu Dao,
# Taisho Jima/Chiwei Yu,
# Kuba Jima/Huangwei Yu,
# Kita Kojima/Bei Xiaodao,
# Minami Kojima/Nan Xiaodao,
# Okino Kitaiwa/Da Bei Xiaodao,
# Okino Minami-iwa/Da Nan Xiaodao,
# Tobise/Yan Jiaoyan or Fei Jiaoyan
| image size       = 320px
| locator map      =
| map_custom       =
| native name      =
| native name link =
| other_names         = {{lang-ja|尖閣諸島}}<br/>{{zh|c=釣魚台列嶼}}; {{zh|c=钓鱼台群岛}}<br/>Pinnacle Islands
| location         = [[Pacific Ocean]]
| coordinates      = {{Coord|25|47|53|N|124|03|21|E|type:isle|display=inline}}
| archipelago      =
| total islands    = 5 + 3 rocks
| major islands    =
| area             = {{convert|7|km2|acre}}
| length           =
| width            =
| coastline        =
| highest mount    = Uotsuri Jima/Diaoyu Dao
| elevation        = {{convert|383|m|ft}}
| country claim                         = Japan
| country claim divisions title   = Prefecture
| country claim divisions         = [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]]
| country claim capital city            =
| country claim largest city            =
| country claim largest city population =
| country claim leader title            =
| country claim leader name             =
| country 1 claim                        = People's Republic of China
| country 1 claim divisions title   = Province
| country 1 claim divisions         = [[Taiwan Province, People's Republic of China|Taiwan Province]]
| country 1 claim capital city            =
| country 1 claim largest city            =
| country 1 claim largest city population =
| country 1 claim leader title            =
| country 1 claim leader name             =
| country 2 claim                        = Republic of China (Taiwan)
| country 2 claim divisions title   = Township
| country 2 claim divisions         = [[Toucheng, Yilan|Toucheng]], [[Yilan County]]
| country 2 claim capital city            =
| country 2 claim largest city            =
| country 2 claim largest city population =
| country 2 claim leader title            =
| country 2 claim leader name             =
| country                          = Japan
| country admin divisions title   =City
| country admin divisions         = [[Ishigaki, Okinawa|Ishigaki]]
| country capital city            =
| country largest city            =
| country largest city population =
| country leader title            =
| country leader name             =
| population       =
| population as of =
| density          =
| ethnic groups    =
| additional info  =
}}

The {{Nihongo|'''Senkaku Islands'''|{{linktext|尖|閣|諸|島}}|Senkaku Shotō, variants: Senkaku-guntō<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://geographic.org/geographic_names/name.php?uni=-368031&fid=3261&c=japan |title=Senkaku-guntō: Japan |format= |work= |accessdate=2010-09-20}}</ref> and Senkaku-rettō<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://geographic.org/geographic_names/name.php?uni=-368032&fid=3261&c=japan |title=Senkaku-rettō: Japan |format= |work= |accessdate=2010-09-20}}</ref>}}, also known as the '''Diaoyu Islands''' ({{zh|t={{linktext|釣|魚|台|群|島}}|s={{linktext|钓|鱼|台|群|岛}}|p=Diàoyútái Qúndǎo}}), or the '''Pinnacle Islands''', are a group of [[territorial dispute|disputed]] [[Desert island|uninhabited islands]] controlled and administered by [[Japan]] since 1895, but also claimed by both the [[Republic of China]] ([[Taiwan]]) and the [[People's Republic of China]] as part of [[Taiwan Province]], [[Toucheng, Yilan|Toucheng Township]] in [[Yilan County, Taiwan|Yilan County]] since 1971. The [[United States]] controlled the islands as part of its occupation of Okinawa from 1945 to 1972.

The islands are located roughly northeast of Taiwan, due west of [[Okinawa]], and due north of the southwestern end of the [[Ryukyu Islands]] in the [[East China Sea]].

The islands are a major issue in [[Sino-Japanese relations|foreign relations between Japan and the PRC]] and [[Japan-Republic of China relations|between Japan and the ROC]]. The Japanese government regards these islands as a part of [[Okinawa prefecture]]. Despite the [[Cross-strait relations|complexity of PRC-ROC relations]], both governments agree that the islands are part of [[Taiwan]], which is administered by the [[Republic of China|ROC]].

==Names==
The first recorded name of the islands, '''Diaoyu''', used in books such as ''[[Voyage with a Tail Wind]]'' ({{zh|t=順風相送|s=顺风相送|p=Shǜnfēng Xiāngsòng}}) and ''[[Record of the Imperial Envoy's Visit to Ryūkyū]]'' ({{zh|t=使琉球錄|s=使琉球录|p=Shĭ Liúqiú Lù}}) dates back to the Chinese [[Ming Dynasty]] (1368-1644 CE).  Adopted by the Chinese Imperial Map of the Ming Dynasty, both the [[Chinese language|Chinese]] name for the island group (''Diaoyu'') and the [[Japanese language|Japanese]] name for the main island (''Uotsuri'') both literally mean "[[angling]]".

In 1884, the English name '''Pinnacle Islands''' was used by the British navy for the rocks adjacent to, but not including, the largest island ''Uotsuri Jima''/''Diaoyu Dao'' (then called ''Hoa-pin-su''). Neither ''Kuba Jima''/''Huangwei Yu'' (then called ''Ti-a-usu'') nor ''Taishō Jima''/''Chiwei Yu'' (then called "Raleigh Rock") were considered part of the Pinnacle Islands.<ref>
{{Cite book
 | title= A Directory for the Navigation of the Indian Archipelago and the Coast of China
 | author = Findlay, A.G.
 | publisher = Richard Holes Laurie
 | location = London
 | year = 1889
 | pages = 1135 }}
</ref><ref>
{{Cite book
 | title = The China Sea Directory, Vol IV.
 | author = Navigating Lieutenant Frederick W. Jarrad, R.N.
 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=LvoGAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA141&dq=Hoa-pin-su
 | publisher = J.D.Potter for the [[United Kingdom Hydrographic Office|Hydrographic Office]], [[Admiralty]], London
 | year = 1873
 | pages = 141–142
 | accessdate = 2007-06-04 }}
</ref><ref>
{{Cite book
 | title = Sovereign Rights and Territorial Space in Sino-Japanese Relations
 | author = Unryu Suganuma
 | publisher = University of Hawaii Press
 | year = 2000
 | pages = 95
 | isbn = 0824824938
 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=vDpEiKR2osoC&pg=PA95&dq=Pinnacle+Islands
 | accessdate = 2007-07-23 }}
</ref> However, in recent years the name "Pinnacle Islands" has come to be used to refer to the entire island group, as an English-language equivalent to "Diaoyu" or "Senkaku".<ref name="Hagstrom">
{{Cite book
 | title= Japan's China Policy: A Relational Power Analysis
 | author = Hagström, L.
 | publisher = Routledge
 | location = Oxford
 | year = 2005}}
</ref><ref>
{{Cite book
 | title = Boundary and Territory Briefing, Vol 3 No. 7.
 | author = Seokwoo Lee
 | publisher = International Boundaries Research Unit
 | year = 2002
 | pages = 1
 | chapter = Territorial Disputes among Japan, China and Taiwan concerning the Senkaku Islands
 | accessdate = 2007-06-04 }}
</ref>

In 1900, when Tsune Kuroiwa, a teacher at the Okinawa Prefecture Normal School, visited the islands, he adopted the name ''Senkaku Retto''({{zh|t=尖閣列島|s=尖阁列岛|p=Jiāngéliè Dăo}}), literally ''Pinnacle Islands'', to refer the whole island group, based on the British name.<ref name="gaiko monjo" /> The first official document recording the name Senkaku Retto was by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in ''Nihon Gaiko Monjo'' (日本外交文書, Documents on Japanese Foreign Relations) in the 1950s.<ref name="gaiko monjo" /> In Japanese,  {{Nihongo|'''Sentō Shosho'''|尖頭諸嶼}} and {{Nihongo|'''Senkaku Shosho'''|尖閣諸嶼}} were translations used for these "Pinnacle Islands" by various Japanese sources. Subsequently, the entire island group (including ''Uotsuri Jima''/''Diaoyu Dao'' and all the others) came to be called ''Senkaku Rettō'', which later evolved into ''Senkaku Shotō''.<ref name="gaiko monjo">
{{Cite book
 | title = Sovereign Rights and Territorial Space in Sino-Japanese Relations
 | author = Unryu Suganuma
 | publisher = University of Hawaii Press
 | year = 2000
 | pages = 89–97
 | isbn = 0824824938}}
</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:Kitakojima and Minamikojima of Senkaku Islands.jpg|thumb|right|225px|Kita Kojima (left) and Minami Kojima]]

The islands sit on the edge of the continental shelf of mainland Asia, and are separated from the [[Ryukyu Islands]] by the [[Okinawa Trough]].  They are 170 kilometers (106&nbsp;mi) north of Ishigaki Island, Japan; 186&nbsp;km (116&nbsp;mi) northeast of Keelung, Taiwan; and 410&nbsp;km (255&nbsp;mi) west of Okinawa Island.
[[Image:Senkaku-uotsuri.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Aerial view of Diaoyu Dao, Diaoyu Tai or Uotsuri Jima]]
Japan put these islets under the administration of [[Okinawa]] whereas the [[People's Republic of China]] and [[Republic of China]] (Taiwan) see it as a part of [[Taiwan]].

Diaoyu Dao / Uotsuri Jima, the largest island, has a number of [[Endemic (ecology)|endemic]] species such as the [[Nesoscaptor uchidai]] and Okinawa-kuro-oo-ari ant, but these have become threatened by [[Capra (genus)|domestic goats]] that were introduced to the island in 1978 and whose population has increased to over 300 since that time.<ref name = "Endemic">{{cite conference | author = Yokohata, Y. | title = Urgent appeal for the conservation of the natural environment in Uotsuri-jima Island in Senkaku Islands, Japan | booktitle = Recent advances in the biology of Japanese Insectivora. Proceedings of the Symposium on the biology of insectivores in Japan and on the wildlife conservation | pages = 79–87 | publisher = Laboratory of Environmental Biology, Faculty of Education, Toyama University | year = 1999 | url = http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~rmacarth/yokohata1999.html | accessdate = 2006-12-09}}</ref>

Amongst all islands, Nan Xiaodao / Minami Kojima is one of the few breeding places of the rare [[Short-tailed Albatross]] (''Phoebastria albatrus'').

{|class="wikitable"
|+'''List of Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands'''
|-
!Chinese name!!Japanese name!!coordinates!!Area(km<sup>2</sup>)||Highest elevation(m)
|-
|Diaoyu Dao (釣魚島<ref name='Chinese Names'>{{Cite web|url=http://bbs.1931-9-18.org/attachment.php?aid=96164 |title=钓鱼诸屿名称变异表 |accessdate=2009-01-02 |format=Doc |language=Simplified Chinese |archiveurl=http://203.208.37.104/search?q=cache:f1N9DkJ9PBYJ:bbs.1931-9-18.org/attachment.php%3Faid%3D96164+%E9%92%93%E9%B1%BC%E8%AF%B8%E5%B1%BF%E5%90%8D%E7%A7%B0%E5%8F%98%E5%BC%82%E8%A1%A8&hl=zh-CN&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=cn&st_usg=ALhdy29SvFNh1FXqN_HvzGCk-YlNyiCJJg|archivedate=Unknown date}}</ref>)||Uotsuri Jima (魚釣島<ref name='Japanese Names'>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cfdd.org.cn/html/dyd/11-12.html |title=第十一章 日本国窃踞中国海洋国土篇 - （16） 日本国窃土前后（窃土→放弃窃土→窃土再占）岛屿名称变异综览表 |accessdate=2009-01-02 |last=鞠 |first=德源 |language=Chinese |archiveurl=http://72.14.235.132/search?sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&q=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.cfdd.org.cn%2Fhtml%2Fdyd%2F11-12.html |archivedate=2008-12-12<!-- 23:43:24 GMT-->}}</ref>)||{{Coord|25|46|N|123|31|E|type:isle}}||4.32||383<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?latitude=25.7416666666667&longitude=123.466666666667] Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 1, Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>
|-
|Huangwei Yu (黃尾嶼<ref name='Chinese Names'/>)||Kuba Jima (久場島<ref name='Japanese Names'/>)||{{Coord|25|56|N|123|41|E|type:isle}}||1.08||117<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?latitude=25.9347222222222&longitude=123.677083333333] Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 2, Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>
|-
|Chiwei Yu (赤尾嶼<ref name='Chinese Names'/>)||Taishō Jima (大正島<ref name='Japanese Names'/>)||{{Coord|25|55|N|124|34|E|type:isle}}||0.0609||75<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?latitude=25.9291666666667&longitude=124.552083333333] Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 3, Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>
|-
|Nan Xiaodao(南小島)||Minami Kojima (南小島) ||{{Coord|25|45|N|123|36|E|type:isle}}||0.4592||149
|-
|Bei Xiaodao(北小島)||Kita Kojima (北小島)||{{Coord|25|45|N|123|36|E|type:isle}}||0.3267||135<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?latitude=25.7333333333333&longitude=123.539583333333] Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 4, Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>
|-
|Da Bei Xiaodao({{lang|zh|大北小島|大北小島}})<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/cgi-bin/watchizu.cgi?id=38235400&slidex=1200&slidey=200 Japanese Map 5]</ref>||Okino Kitaiwa(沖ノ北岩)||{{Coord|25|49|N|123|36|E|type:isle}}||0.0183<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?latitude=25.7819444444444&longitude=123.535416666667 Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 5], Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>||-
|-
|Da Nan Xiaodao (大南小島)<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/cgi-bin/watchizu.cgi?id=38235405&slidex=0&slidey=2000 Japanese Map 7]</ref>||Okino Minami-iwa(沖ノ南岩)||{{Coord|25|47|N|123|37|E|type:isle}}||0.0048<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?latitude=25.7569444444444&longitude=123.572916666667] Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 6, Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>||-
|-
|Fei Jiao Yan(飛礁岩)<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?b=254408.0&l=1233021.0 Japanese Map 8]</ref>||{{Nihongo|Tobise|飛瀬}} or<br /> {{Nihongo|Tobishou|飛礁|(past name)}}||{{Coord|25|45|N|123|33|E|type:isle}}||0.0008<ref>[http://watchizu.gsi.go.jp/watchizu.html?b=254408.0&l=1233021.0] Diaoyu Islands / Senkaku Islands map 6, Geography Institution of National territory, Japan</ref>||-
|}

==Beginning of the territorial dispute==
Following the [[Meiji Restoration]], the Meiji Japanese government formally annexed what was known as the [[Ryukyu Kingdom]] as Okinawa Prefecture in 1879. The Senkaku Islands, which lie between [[Ryukyu Kingdom]] and China, became the Sino-Japanese boundary for the first time.

In 1885, the Japanese Governor of Okinawa Prefecture, [[Nishimura Sutezo]], petitioned the Meji government asking that it take formal control of the Senkaku Islands.<ref name="gaiko monjo" /> However, [[Inoue Kaoru]], the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, commented that the islands lay near to the border area with the Qing empire and that they had been given Chinese names. An article in a Chinese newspaper had previously claimed that Japan was occupying islands off China's coast. Inoue was concerned that if Japan proceeded to erect a landmark stating its claim to the islands, it would make the Qing empire suspicious.<ref name="gaiko monjo"/> Following Inoue's advice, [[Yamagata Aritomo]], the Minister of the Interior turned down the request to incorporate the islands, insisting that this matter should not be "revealed to the news media".<ref name="gaiko monjo" />

On 14 January 1895, during the [[Sino-Japanese War]], Japan officially incorporated the islands under the administration of Okinawa, stating that it had conducted surveys since 1884 and that the islands were [[terra nullius]] (Latin: no man's land), with there being no evidence to suggest that they had been under Qing empire's control. After China lost the war both countries signed the [[Treaty of Shimonoseki]] in April 1895 that stipulated, among other things, that China would cede to Japan "the island of Formosa together with all islands appertaining or belonging to said island of [[Formosa]] (Taiwan)".<ref>[Article II{b}], [[Treaty of Shimonoseki]]</ref>

There is a disagreement between the Japanese, PRC and ROC (Taiwan) governments as to whether the Senkaku Islands are implied to be part of the "islands appertaining or belonging to said island of Formosa".<ref name="gaiko monjo" />

In 1969, the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) indicated the possibility of large oil and gas reserves around the Senkaku Islands.<ref name="GlobalSec"/> In the same year, the US expressed its intention to hand over Okinawa and its surrounding islands (including the Senkaku Islands), occupied since the end of [[World War II]] to [[Japan]].<ref>[http://www.taiwanbasic.com/key/ryukyu-exor.htm#nitem3 Joint Statement by President Nixon and Prime Minister Eisaku Sato, 21 November 1969]</ref>

Subsequently, both the PRC and ROC (Taiwan) governments have protested and asserted their claim to sovereignty over the islands. The ROC (Taiwan) made an official announcement to this effect on 11 June 1971, followed by the PRC on 30 December. However, the United States handed over the Senkaku Islands to Japan on 15 May 1972.<ref>[http://www.taiwanbasic.com/key/ Military Occupation and the San Francisco Peace Treaty]</ref>


==Japanese claims to the islands==
[[File:1953renminribao.GIF|250px|thumb|This 1953 article in the PRC [[Renmin Ribao]] newspapers refers to the islets as the "Senkaku islands".]]
Japan's stance is that there is no room to talk about sovereignty over Senkaku islands.  
The claims of the PRC & ROC are absurd to require the sovereignty over Senkaku islands on international laws.

The key points supporting Japan's claim to the Senkaku islands are as follows.
# The islands were not inhabited up to 1895.
# Several months before the cession of Taiwan to Japan by the [[Qing Dynasty]], Japan had already claimed and incorporated the islands into Japanese territory; as a result, the islands remained Japanese territory and would not be affected by the retro-cession of Taiwan in 1945.
# Though the islands were controlled by the United States as an occupying power between 1945 and 1972, Japan has since 1972 exercised administration over the islands. According to the Japanese government, the PRC and ROC (Taiwan) have come to claim the sovereignty since a submarine oil field was discovered near these islands.<ref name="GlobalSec"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/senkaku/senkaku.html|title=The Basic View on the Sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands|publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan}}</ref> In addition, the former [[President of Republic of China]], [[Lee Teng-hui]], also once stated that the Senkaku Islands are part of Okinawa.<ref name="Taipeitimes20090905">{{Cite web|url=http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2009/09/05/2003452834 |title=Lee Teng-hui arrives in Japan |accessdate=2009-09-22 |date=2009-09.05 |work=Taipei Times}}</ref>

===Formal incorporation===
[[File:PRCmap-senkakuislands.jpg|250px|thumb|This classified PRC government map from 1969 refers to the "Senkaku islands" as Japanese territory.]]
Japan claims that after the [[Meiji Restoration]], the Japanese government conducted surveys of the islands beginning in 1885, which found that the islands were ''[[terra nullius]]'' (Latin: no man's land) and that there was no evidence to suggest that they had ever been under Chinese control. At the time of this survey, however, [[Yamagata Aritomo]], the minister of interior of the Meji government, put off the request to incorporate the islands, saying that those islands lay near the Sino-Japanese boundary and already had Chinese names.

On 14 January 1895, Japan formally incorporated the islands into its territory, during the [[First Sino-Japanese War]], three months before its military victory and the signing of the [[Treaty of Shimonoseki]]. Japan erected a marker on the islands to formally incorporate them as its territory. This decision was publicized in 1950.<ref>http://english.people.com.cn/200305/25/eng20030525_117192.shtml</ref> Four of the islands were subsequently developed by the Koga family, with the permission of the Japanese government.

===History of Ming China===
Japanese scholars claim that neither [[China]] nor [[Ryūkyū Kingdom|Ryukyu]] had recognized sovereignty over the uninhabited islands. Therefore, they claim that Chinese documents only prove that Kumejima, the first inhabited island reached by the Chinese, belonged to Okinawa. Kentaro Serita (芹田健太郎) of Kobe University points out that the official history book of the Ming Dynasty compiled during the Qing Dynasty, called the ''[[History of Ming]]'' (明史), describes Taiwan in its "Biographies of Foreign Countries" (外国列传) section. Thus, China did not control the Senkaku Islands or Taiwan during the Ming Dynasty.<ref>http://akebonokikaku.hp.infoseek.co.jp/page092.html</ref> The contrary viewpoint is that this evidence goes only to verify that the early Qing Dynasty (which compiled the book) saw Taiwan and its surrounding islands as outside its territory. For 39 years between the end of the [[Ming Dynasty]] and the conquest of Taiwan by the [[Qing Dynasty]], Taiwan was ruled by a separate regime, the [[Kingdom of Tungning]], which swore loyalty to the Ming. Such evidence is thus not relevant to the Qing Dynasty's attitude towards the islands after its conquest of Taiwan.

===Letter from a Chinese diplomat===
[[File:Letter of thanks from ROC consul to Ishigakijima in 1920.jpg|300px|thumb| Letter from tbe Beiyang Government, referring to the Senkaku Islands as being part of Japan.]]
After a number of Chinese were rescued from a shipwreck in 1920, a letter purportedly sent to Japanese fishermen by the Chinese Consul Feng Mien (冯冕/馮冕) in Nagasaki on behalf of the [[Beiyang Government]], a [[warlord]] regime, reference was made to "Senkaku Islands, Yaeyama District, Okinawa Prefecture, the Empire of Japan".<ref>http://www.geocities.jp/tanaka_kunitaka/senkaku/testimonial1920.jpg</ref> The language used in this letter appears to show Chinese recognition of the islands as being part of Okinawa and therefore Japan.

===PRC map===
A classified map made by the PRC's map authority in 1969 described the islands as the Senkaku Islands and stated that they were Japanese territory.<ref>{{Cite web| title=China-Japan tensions | url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/sep/15/inside-the-ring-145889960/ | publisher=The Washington Times | accessdate=2010-09-18}}</ref>

===Geography Textbook===
According to the geography textbook published in 1970 in Taiwan, where every textbook had to be officially approved by the government, clearly showed the islands as Japanese territories.<ref>「国民中学地理教科書・第四冊(Geography textbook for national junior high schools)」January, 1970</ref>

===United States occupation===
Japan claims that after [[World War II]], the islands came under the United States occupation of Okinawa. During this period, the United States and the Ryūkyū Government administered the islands and the US Navy used Kuba-jima and Taisho-jima as maneuver areas. In 1972, sovereignty over Okinawa, and arguably the surrounding islands, was handed back to Japan as part of the termination of United States Military Government jurisdiction over the Article 3 territories of the [[Treaty of San Francisco]].

==PRC and ROC (Taiwan) claims to the islands==
[[File:1786年中国往琉球海路图2.jpg|thumb|250px|A 1785 Japanese map, the ''Sangoku tsūran zusetsu'' (三国通覧図説) by [[Hayashi Shihei]]<ref>[http://www.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kotenseki/html/ru03/ru03_01547/index.html] 三国通覧図説 (Sangoku Tsuran Zusetsu), 林子平(Hayashi Shihei)</ref> adopted the Chinese [[Kanji]](釣魚臺 Diaoyutai) to annotate the disputed islands, which were painted in the same color as China.<ref name="gaiko monjo" />]]
The claims of the PRC and ROC (Taiwan) to the islands are the same. The two governments state that the islands were known to China at least (and possibly as early as [[770 BC]] ~ [[221 BC]], from a passage in the [[Shan Hai Jing]], chapter "Haineibei jing"<ref name='Early History'>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cfdd.org.cn/html/dyd/3-6.html |title=第三章钓鱼台列屿中国固有主权领土命名传承证据篇 - 丁：钓鱼台列屿中国固有主权领土历代名称沿革表 - 1 |accessdate=2009-01-02 |last=鞠 |first=德源 |publisher=中国民间保钓联合会 |language=Chinese |archiveurl=http://72.14.235.132/search?sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&q=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.cfdd.org.cn%2Fhtml%2Fdyd%2F3-6.html |archivedate=2008-11-29<!-- 07:22:23 GMT -->}}</ref>) since the [[Ming Dynasty]], and were controlled by the [[Qing Dynasty]] along with [[Taiwan]].

Between 1895 and 1945, Japan administered the islands as part of Taiwan. However, more importantly, none of the Allies recognized any transfer of the territorial sovereignty of either Taiwan or any nearby islands to the ROC at any time during the 1940s or 1950s.  In a 1959 court case in the United States, the US State Dept. was specifically quoted as maintaining that: " . . .  the sovereignty of Formosa has not been transferred to China . . . " and that "Formosa is not a part of China as a country, at least not as yet, and not until and unless appropriate treaties are hereafter entered into. Formosa may be said to be a territory or an area occupied and administered by the Government of the Republic of China, but is not officially recognized as being a part of the Republic of China."<ref>{{Cite web| url=http://www.taiwanbasic.com/nstatus/shengvs.htm | title=Sheng v. Rogers | accessdate=2009-12-26 | publisher= DC Circuit Court }}</ref>

After World War II, due to the civil war between competing PRC and ROC factions in China, both parties did not place their focus on the islands to avoid further disputes.

From 1945 to 1971, the Chinese held undefined positions on the sovereignty and administration on the islands. In 1971, when the US expressed its intention to hand over the disputed islands to Japan, both the PRC and ROC governments protested and reiterated their claimed sovereignty over the islands.

===Ming Dynasty claim===
The PRC and ROC claim that the islands were within the [[Ming Dynasty]]'s sea-defense area and are a part of [[Taiwan]].<ref name="PeopleDaily2003">[http://english.people.com.cn/200305/25/eng20030525_117192.shtml "China's Diaoyu Islands Sovereignty is Undeniable"], People's Daily, 25-05-2003. Retrieved 24-02-2007.</ref> According to the Chinese, China's sovereignty over the islands is dated to the early 15<sup>th</sup> century, during the reign of the Ming Dynasty. The name ''Diaoyutai'' first appeared in 1403 in the Chinese book ''Voyage with the Tail Wind'' (順風相送), which recorded the names of the islands that voyagers had passed on a trip from [[Fujian]] to the [[Ryukyu Kingdom]]. By 1534, all the major islets of the island group had been identified and named in the book ''Record of the Imperial Envoy's Visit to Ryukyu''(使琉球錄).<ref name="PeopleDaily2003" />

===Qing Dynasty claim===
From 1624 until 1662, Taiwan and some of its surrounding islands, though not the Senkaku Islands, were controlled by the [[Dutch people|Dutch]] as a base for commerce. In 1662, the Dutch were driven out by ex-Ming Dynasty general [[Koxinga|Zheng Chenggong]] (more popularly known as Koxinga). Zheng Chenggong and his successors established the [[Kingdom of Tungning]] and controlled the area until 1683. In the same year, Zheng's grandson [[Zheng Keshuang]] was defeated by [[Qing Dynasty]] forces led by Admiral [[Shi Lang]]. From then on, Qing Dynasty China gained effective control over [[Taiwan]] and its surrounding islands, including the islands in dispute today.<ref>[http://www.diaoyuislands.org/islands/hollysoil.html 中國領土釣魚台], DiaoyuIslands.org. Retrieved on 2007-02-26.</ref>

===Unequal Treaties===
After losing the [[First Sino-Japanese War]], [[Qing Dynasty|Qing]] [[China]] signed the [[Treaty of Shimonoseki]] on 17 April 1895. This [[Unequal Treaties|Unequal Treaty]] ceded Taiwan and its surrounding islands to Japan. The PRC and ROC governments see the disputed islands as having been included in the islands ceded to Japan by the treaty, because of the historical evidence discussed above, even though the Treaty did not explicitly enumerate all the islands ceded under it.

On this basis, they argue that they have sovereignty over the islands for two reasons. First, they claim that the islands are still part of [[Taiwan Province, People's Republic of China|Taiwan Province]] of [[China]].<ref name="Tzou">{{Cite book|last=Tzou|first=Byron N.|title=China and International Law: The Boundary Disputes|year=1990|publisher=Praeger/Greenwood|pages=78|isbn=0275934624}}</ref> Secondly, that since the disputed islands were ceded along with Taiwan in 1895, therefore when Japan returned to China all territories it had obtained from China since the First Sino-Japanese War at the end of World War II, the disputed islands were returned along with Taiwan to China.

However, the United States, as principal victor over Japan, has consistently maintained that there was no "return" of island territories to China after the close of hostilities in World War II, either due to the Japanese surrender ceremonies, or according to the specifications of the post-war treaties.  The Starr Memorandum of the US State Dept., issued in Oct. 1971, is often quoted as an authoritative reference on this subject.<ref>{{Cite web| url=http://www.taiwanbasic.com/nstatus/starr.htm | title=The Starr Memorandum | accessdate=2009-12-26 | publisher= US State Dept. }}</ref>

===Tokyo court ruling===
The PRC and ROC also assert that in 1944, a Tokyo court ruled that the islands were part of [[Taihoku Prefecture]] ([[Taipei]] Prefecture), following a dispute between [[Okinawa Prefecture]] and Taihoku Prefecture. However, the assertion was solely based on a "claim" by the president of the fishermen's association of Keelung city in 4 August 1971. The primary source of this paragraph can be found in the journal "Modern China Studies", Issue 1, 1997 (in [[Simplified Chinese]]).<ref>http://www.chinayj.net/StubArticle.asp?issue=970111&total=56</ref>

==HIstrical events==
*1971: The Republic of China (ROC) and the People's Republic of China (PRC) claim sovereignty
*1972: The US return back Senkaku islands to Japan as part of Okinawa
*1978: The Japan Youth Association set up a lighthouse on the main island.
*14 July 1996: The Japan Youth Association builds a 5 m high, solar-powered, aluminum lighthouse on another island.
*14 September 1996: a US State Department spokesman referred to the US's neutral position on the Senkaku Islands issue.
*26 September 1996: [[David Chan]] (陳毓祥), a [[Hong Kong]] protester, drowns near the islets, after leaping off one of the protest vessels with several companions with the object of symbolizing Chinese claim of sovereignty.
*7 October 1996: Protesters plant the flags of the [[flag of the Republic of China|ROC]] and the [[flag of the People's Republic of China|PRC]] on the main island, but are later removed by the Japanese.
* 9 April 1999: US Ambassador to Japan Thomas S. Foley said "we are not, as far as I understand, taking a specific position in the dispute.... we do not assume that there will be any reason to engage the security treaty in any immediate sense."
* 20 April  2000: [[:ja:尖閣神社|Senkaku Shinto shrine]] ({{Lang|ja|尖閣神社}}) was established on Uotsuri Jima/Diaoyudao.<ref>A picture of the [http://www.panoramio.com/photo/19910290 Senkaku Shinto shirine].</ref>
*April 2002: The Japanese government leased Uotsuri and other islands from their private owners.
*24 March 2004: A group of Chinese activists from the PRC planned to stay on the Islands for three days. The seven people who landed on the islands were arrested by the Japanese for [[illegal entry]]. The Japanese Foreign Ministry forwarded a complaint to the PRC government, but the PRC in turn demanded the release of the activists. They were then sent to Japan and deported from there. Japan subsequently stated that it would prohibit anybody from landing on the islands without prior permission.
*24 March 2004: Adam Ereli, Deputy Spokesman at the US State Department said "The U.S. does not take a position on the question of the ultimate sovereignty of the Senkaku Diaoyu Islands."
*February 2005: Japan planned to take ownership of a privately-owned [[lighthouse]] on Uotsuri, after it was offered to them by the owner, a fisherman living on [[Ishigaki, Okinawa]]. The lighthouse is expected to be managed by the [[Japanese Coast Guard]].
*23 April 2004: a member of a Japanese right-wing group rammed a bus into the Chinese consulate in [[Osaka]], to protest Chinese claims.<ref name="GlobalSec">{{Cite web|url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/senkaku.htm |publisher=Globalsecurity.org |title= Senkaku/Diaoyutai Islands}}</ref>
*July 2004: Japan started exploring for natural gas in what it considers its own exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea as a step to counter China's building of a natural gas complex nearby. Japan plans to survey a 30-kilometer-wide band stretching between latitudes [[28th parallel north|28]] and [[30th parallel north|30 degrees]] North, just inside the border demarcated by Japan. China disputes Japan's rights to explore the area east of the median line between the two countries, which Japan has proposed as the demarcation line for their exclusive economic zones.<ref name="GlobalSec"/>
*July 2004: a group of Chinese held a police-approved demonstration outside the Japanese [[Embassy]] in Beijing afternoon to protest Japan's "illegal" oil exploration activities in a disputed area of the East China Sea. The protesters, organized by Beijing-based organization called the [[Patriots Alliance Network]], shouted slogans for about an hour, during which two embassy staff members came out to take the group's written statement.<ref name="GlobalSec"/>
*10 February 2005: On [[Voice of America]], U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton said that Japan's new assertiveness is in line with the desires of many Japanese politicians to take their country beyond its post-World War Two reliance on the United States. "It's a question of the evolution of Japanese thinking on its own. Japan has made it clear they want to resolve all of the territorial disputes by diplomatic means and that's certainly something that we agree with. Our kind of getting in the middle of it is probably not the most productive way to proceed."
*June 2005: The ROC dispatched a [[Republic of China Navy|ROCN]] [[frigate]] into disputed waters (but did not go as far as the islands) after Taiwanese fishing vessels were harassed by Japanese patrol boats. The frigate, which was carrying Legislative Yuan President [[Wang Jin-pyng]] and ROC Defense Minister [[Lee Jye]], was not challenged and returned to Taiwan without incident. Fisheries talks between Taipei and Tokyo were held in July, but did not cover sovereignty issues.
*17 March 2006: [[Kyodo News]] reported the U.S. Ambassador to Japan, [[Tom Schieffer|Thomas Schieffer]], presented that he considered "the Islands as territory of Japan" in his talk in Tokyo.<ref>(ja) [[Kyodo News]], 17 March 2006 [http://flash24.kyodo.co.jp/?MID=HKK&PG=STORY&NGID=poli&NWID=2006031701004741]</ref>
*27 October 2006: A group of activists from [[Hong Kong]], the [[Action Committee for Defending the Diaoyu Islands]], including [[Tsang Kin Shing]] and several members of the [[April Fifth Action]], approached the islands in order to show the support for Chinese claims to the Senkakus. They were stopped from landing on the islands by the Japan Coast Guard.<ref>[[International Herald Tribune]]/[[Associated Press]], 26 October 2006 [http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/27/asia/AS_GEN_Japan_China_Disputed_Islands.php "Activist ship from Hong Kong briefly enters Japan's waters in protest over islands"]</ref> Later on, the [[People's Liberation Army Navy|PLAN]] conducted a military exercise in the area.<ref>(ja) [[Nihon Keizai Shimbun]], 5 November 2006, [http://www.nikkei.co.jp/china/news/20061103r2m0300z03.html "中国、東シナ海で軍事演習中に爆発事故"]</ref>
*16 April 2008: two [[PLAAF]] J-10A multirole fighter peremptorily intercepted a Japanese P-3C anti-submarine and reconnaissance airplane that was flying closely above the Senkaku Islands.  The two J-10 fighters were suspected of protecting Chinese nuclear submarines that were operating in that area.
*8 September 2008: Two Chinese coast guard vessels started routine patrol within 12 kilometres of Senkaku Islands in order to declare the Senkaku Islands as Chinese territory.
*10 June 2008: The 270 ton sport fishing vessel ''Lien Ho'' of Taiwan suffered a collision with the Japanese patrol vessel ''Koshiki'' and subsequently sank while in the disputed territorial waters that have been claimed by Japan and Taiwan. The Taiwanese crew who were aboard the vessel claims that the larger Japanese frigate deliberately crashed into them; their assertions are backed up by recently released video footage.<ref>[http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2008/06/18/2003415043 Officials drop plan to visit Diaoyutais], ''Taipei Times'' 18 June 2008; for the video footage released by the boat crew, see, for example, [http://youtube.com/watch?v=dc46FlyKuLA here]</ref> While releasing the passengers, Japan initially detained the captain and sought reparations.<ref>[http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national%20news/2008/06/11/160421/Taiwan-fishing.htm "Taiwan fishing boat sunk by Japanese frigate"]</ref><ref>[http://uk.reuters.com/article/oilRpt/idUKPEK35756320080612 "Taiwan protests as Japan holds fishing boat captain"]</ref> The captain has now been released and has returned to Taiwan. [[Liu Chao-shiuan]], [[Premier of the Republic of China]], has refused to rule out the use of force to defend the islands against Japanese advances.<ref>[http://news.chinatimes.com/2007Cti/2007Cti-Focus/2007Cti-Focus-Content/0,4518,9706130061+97061306+0+221352+0,00.html 聯合號船長晚間回國　劉揆要撤銷日本事務會] (Captain of the ''Lianhe'' returned to Taiwan tonight; Premier Liu wants to abolish Japan Affairs Association), ''China Times'', Taipei 2008-06-13</ref> The ROC government recalled its chief representative to Japan in protest.<ref>[http://www.japantoday.com/category/politics/view/taiwan-recalls-top-japan-rep-as-tensions-rise-over-ship-collision Taiwan recalls top Japan rep as tensions rise over ship collision], ''Japan Today'' 15 June 2008</ref> On June 16, a boat carrying activists from Taiwan, defended by five [[Republic of China]] Coast Guard vessels, approached to within {{convert|0.4|nmi|m}} of the main island, from which position they circumnavigated the island in an assertion of sovereignty of the islands. This demonstration has prompted Taiwanese politicians to cancel a planned trip on-board [[Republic of China Navy]] vessels to demonstrate sovereignty.<ref>[http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2008/06/18/2003415043 Officials drop plan to visit Diaoyutais], ''Taipei Times'' 18 June 2008</ref> The Taiwanese vessels were followed by Japanese Coast Guard vessels, but no attempt was made to intercept them. On June 20, the de-facto Japanese ambassador to Taiwan apologized, in person, to the captain of the Taiwanese boat ''Lien Ho''.<ref>[http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iIop13n4GrM8b9z_DwLEubvoEbvg Japan apologises over Taiwan boat incident]</ref>
*20 February 2009: two Chinese [[PLAAF]] [[Chengdu J-10#Variants|J-10A fighters]] intercepted three [[Japan Air Self-Defense Force]] [[Mitsubishi F-2|F-2 fighters]] flying close to the Senkaku Islands, and locked their missiles onto the Japanese fighters.  After a three minute stand-off, the Japanese fighters returned to Japanese air space. The Japanese government stated it was an act of provocation.
*7 September 2010: A Chinese fishing trawler collided with two Japanese Coast Guard patrol boats in disputed waters near the islands. The collisions occurred after the Japanese Coast Guard ordered the trawler to stop fishing. After the collisions, Japanese sailors boarded the Chinese vessel and arrested the captain Zhan Qixiong.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gfux6suEvEhsCmNJgxMYAYK68ZIQ |title=High-seas collisions trigger Japan-China spat |publisher=AFP |date=September 7, 2010}}</ref>
*18 September 2010: 79th anniversary of the [[Mukden Incident]], protests held in Beijing, [[Shanghai]], [[Shenzhen]], Hong Kong and [[Shenyang]].<ref>South China Morning Post. "[http://www.scmp.com/portal/site/SCMP/menuitem.2af62ecb329d3d7733492d9253a0a0a0/?vgnextoid=eb8805a32c52b210VgnVCM100000360a0a0aRCRD&ss=China&s=News SCMP]." ''Article.'' Retrieved on 2010-09-19.</ref>
*22 September 2010: China blocked [[rare earth metals|rare earth minerals]] exports to Japan.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/23/business/global/23rare.html Amid Tension, China Blocks Vital Exports to Japan] New York Times September 22, 2010</ref>  Chinese premier Wen Jiabao threatens further action if the captain of the Chinese fishing trawler is not released. <ref>Yahoo News. "http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100922/ap_on_re_as/as_china_japan_ships_collide" ''Article.'' Retrieved on 2010-09-22.</ref>

==Oil drilling dispute==
Japan has objected to Chinese development of natural gas resources in the East China Sea in an area where the two countries [[Exclusive Economic Zone]] (EEZ) claims overlap. Japan claims a division of the EEZ on the median line between the countries' coastlines. About 40,000 square kilometers of EEZ are in dispute. China and Japan both claim 200 nautical miles EEZ rights, but the East China Sea width is only 360 nautical miles. China claims an EEZ extending to the eastern end of the Chinese continental shelf which goes deep into the Japanese EEZ beyond the median line.<ref name="GlobalSec"/>

The specific development in dispute is China's drilling in the [[Chunxiao field]], which is three miles west of the median line, but which Japan contends may be tapping natural gas reserves which extend past the median line. The Chunxiao gas field in Xihu Sag in the [[East China Sea]] is estimated to hold reserves of more than 1.6 [[tcf]] of [[natural gas]] and is expected to become a major producer in the next ten years. Commercial operation was expected to begin in mid-2005 at a production rate of 70 [[bcf]] per year, rising to 282 bcf by 2010.   [[Sinopec Star]] has reserves of 7 tcf of gas, 1.9 tcf of which is held in the Chunxiao area.<ref name="GlobalSec"/>

==See also==
{{Commons category}}
{{Commons category|Diaoyu Islands}}
{{Commons category|Pinnalce Islands}}
*[[Sino-Japanese relations]]
*[[China Federation for Defending the Diaoyu Islands]]
*[[Action Committee for Defending the Diaoyu Islands]]
*[[History of Japan]]
*[[History of China]]
*[[History of Taiwan]]
*[[Okinotorishima]]

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist|2}}

==References==
* Suganuma, Unryu. ''Sovereign rights and territorial space in Sino-Japanese relations: Irredentism and the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands.'' Honolulu: Association for Asian Studies and University of Hawai’i Press, 2000.
* John Donaldson and Alison Williams "Understanding Maritime Jurisdictional Disputes: The East China Sea and Beyond" Journal of International affairs. Fall/Winter 2005, vol. 59, no.1
* Note, Alexander M. Peterson "Sino-Japanese Cooperation in the East China Sea: A Lasting Arrangement?" 42 Cornell International Law Journal 441 (2009).

==External links==
*[http://www.cfau.edu.cn/jiaoxue/english/courses/diaoyudao%20translation.doc Diaoyu Islands-China's Indisputable Territory.Foreign Affairs University]
*[http://www.mofa.go.jp/region/asia-paci/senkaku/senkaku.html Basic View on Senkaku] (by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
* [http://www.skycitygallery.com/japan/diaohist.html Article by Kiyoshi Inoue] Professor of History department Kyoto University
* [http://newssearch.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/search/results.pl?scope=newsifs&tab=news&q=Senkaku&go.x=31&go.y=16 Senkaku @BBC]
* {{Cite web|url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/senkaku.htm |publisher=Globalsecurity.org |title= Senkaku/Diaoyutai Islands}}
* [http://www.hawaii.edu/aplpj/articles/APLPJ_01.2_heflin.pdf Law School Article by William Heflin]
*[http://english.people.com.cn/200305/25/eng20030525_117192.shtml "China's Diaoyu Islands Sovereignty is Undeniable"] at [http://english.people.com.cn People's Daily Online]
* [http://www.diaoyuislands.org/islands/hollysoil.html Diaoyutai History (in Chinese)]
* [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Taiwan&ie=UTF8&t=h&ll=25.732024,123.500919&spn=0.103453,0.134239&z=13 Satellite image of Senkaku Islands]
* [http://organizations.lawschool.cornell.edu/ilj/issues/42.3/CIN305.pdf Alexander M. Peterson's 2009 Note in the Cornell International Law Journal detailing the dispute, clarifying the legal impact of the 2008 Sino-Japanese arrangement to cooperate in the East China Sea, and proposing increased Sino-Japanese cooperation.]
* Ito, Masami, "[http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100922x3.html Japan-China island tensions rise]:  The ins and outs of the spat over a Chinese fishing boat captain,", ''[[Japan Times]]'', 22 September 2010.</ref>

{{Territorial disputes in East and South Asia}}

[[Category:Islands of Japan]]
[[Category:Disputed islands]]
[[Category:Territorial disputes of Japan]]
[[Category:Territorial disputes of the People's Republic of China]]
[[Category:Territorial disputes of the Republic of China]]
[[Category:Islands of China]]
[[Category:Islands of Taiwan]]
[[Category:Cross-Strait interactions]]
[[Category:Archipelagoes of Japan]]

[[zh-min-nan:Tiò-hî-tó]]
[[de:Senkaku-Inseln]]
[[es:Islas Senkaku]]
[[eo:Senkaku-insuloj]]
[[eu:Sentaku uharteak]]
[[fr:Îles Senkaku]]
[[gan:釣魚臺]]
[[hak:Tiau-ǹg-thòi Lie̍t-yí]]
[[ko:센카쿠 열도]]
[[id:Kepulauan Senkaku]]
[[it:Senkaku Shotō]]
[[nl:Senkaku-eilanden]]
[[ja:尖閣諸島]]
[[no:Senkakuøyene]]
[[pl:Wyspy Senkaku]]
[[pt:Ilhas Diaoyu]]
[[ru:Сэнкаку]]
[[simple:Senkaku Islands]]
[[fi:Senkakusaaret]]
[[sv:Senkaku-öarna]]
[[tl:Kapuluang Pinnacle]]
[[uk:Острови Сенкаку]]
[[vi:Quần đảo Senkaku]]
[[zh-classical:釣魚臺列嶼]]
[[zh-yue:釣魚台]]
[[zh:釣魚台列嶼]]