The Dispute over the Diaoyu Islands

The Dispute over the Diaoyu Islands The Diaoyu Islands are located in the East China Sea about 92 nautical miles northeast of Keelung in Taiwan Province. They include Diaoyu Island, Yellow Tail Island, Akao Island, South Island, North Island, and three reefs with a total area of about 6.5 square kilometers, with Diaoyu Island covering the largest area of 4.3 square kilometers. The Diaoyu Islands are China's inherent territory, and its sovereignty over them is indisputable. In his article "The Senkaku Islands: Japanese Territory?" the author states, "In the 1880′s, Japan conducted surveys of the Senkaku Islands and determined that they were uninhabited and officially claimed by no nation. They were formally annexed in 1895." However, this is not true. The Diaoyu Islands have been considered to be part of China's territory since the Ming dynasty, and there are records that can be traced back to that time. In a book called Voyage with a Tail Wind, (Shun Feng Xiang Song) claims that the Ming Dynasty (1403) published one of the earliest extant historical records of China’s claim to the Diaoyu Islands. The author proved that the Diaoyu Islands were discovered by mariners on the canonized ship to Ryukyu between 1372 and 1403. Since then, he says, the Diaoyu Islands have been used as a sign of maritime navigation. Early in the Ming Dynasty, the Diaoyu Islands were included in China's maritime zone, regarded as against the pirates of the sea frontier because during that time, Japan’s Wako pirates colluded with Chinese pirates to raid China's Zhejiang and Fujian coastal areas. This information is conformed in Chouhaipian of Haiguotuzhi, the book compiled by the Ming Dynasty General Hu Zongxian Cheng. In 1561, and Mao Yuan's instrument drawn Haiphong published maps in 1621, they all included the Diaoyu Islands (1). In 1654 Qing Emperor Kangxi canonized the king of Ryukyu and declared the government’s official recognition of Shō Shitsu as king. In 1879, Japanese