East China Sea - Page 2

China Wants Japan, US Out of Okinawa

On the day after Christmas, three Chinese boats, one modified to carry four cannons, entered Japan’s territorial waters surrounding the Senkaku Islands in the southern portion of the East China Sea. The move, a dangerous escalation, is the first time the People’s Republic of China sent an armed vessel into an area that Tokyo claims as its own.

JAPAN-US-MILITARY-OKINAWA-CRIME-ASSEMBLY

East China Sea Dispute Continues to Plague Japan-Sino Diplomacy

As the United States takes the lead in challenging China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, the Chinese government has begun to warn off Japan from assuming a role in the matter. While Japan has no territorial interests in the South China Sea, it continues to disregard China’s claim to the entirety of the East China Sea, much of which Japan claims as its own.

BEIJING, CHINA - NOVEMBER 10: China's President Xi Jinping (R) shakes hands with Japan's P

Japan, Philippines Forge Closer Military Ties in Wake of Chinese Land Grab

Philippine President Benigno Aquino is set to land in Japan on Tuesday following initial negotiations for new weapons trade deals and closer military ties. Observers see the move as a preventative measure in the face of China’s expanded efforts in disputed South China Sea territory to build military facilities and artificial islands, violating international law.

The Yomiuri Shimbun via AP Images

State Department Warns China: Stop Building ‘Sandcastles’ in South China Sea

Tensions are rising in the South China Sea as American officials have become increasingly vocal regarding their opposition to China’s development of islands over which Vietnam and the Philippines contend China has no sovereignty. In a scathing opinion piece in state media Friday, China has responded by telling American officials to stay out of Asian affairs.

AP Photo/Fernando Vergara