Insight: The East China Sea’s ‘Knuckle Junction’
Any successful military campaign by the Chinese military to capture and secure Japan’s Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea could lead to an ‘existential crisis’ for Japan and Taiwan, say experts.
Though China now refers to historic claims to the islands, known as the Diaoyu Islands, it was not until 2012 that Chinese fishing boats, maritime patrol and naval vessels began challenging Japan’s control over the rocky islets.
While China has not officially stated the Senkaku Islands are a ‘core issue’, they have made it ‘unmistakably clear’ that the islands have been ‘part of China since ancient times’, said
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