China and Japan clash
Written by Kellen Potocsnak, Former Student on Thursday, December 5, 2013
Recent tension between China and Japan over islands near Taiwan have come to a boiling point as China attempts to expand its command of the air and seas into the disputed territory near Taiwan.
The islands being fought over lie between Taiwan and the Okinawa Islands. Generally this property would belong to Japan, but China claims that, because the islands are a part of a crucial passageway between China and the United States, they deserve ownership. In response to Japan’s claiming of ownership over the small chain of islands, China has officially expanded its control over air and water transportation to include that area.
Despite China’s new regulatory measures, Japan has shown no willingness to back down from using the islands for trade routes. For the Japanese trade ships that enter the restricted area, China now claims the right to enact “emergency military measures” if the ships do not identify themselves of if they disobey Beijing’s orders.
The United States has made it clear that they are “concerned by the attempt to unilaterally change the status quo,” and they are yet to consider this change to be official. On November 25 and 26, the United States, with blatant disregard for China’s rules, flew two US bombers through China’s claimed air defense zone. In the future, China will record such violations and present them to China’s Security Council.
