U.S. and Japan Must Be Shown: 'White is Not Black' (People's
Daily, China)
Does China have a claim to the Diaoyu
Islands/aka the Senkaku's to the Japanese? Japan's
modern sovereignty was first formally challenged by China in 1968, when oil and
other minerals were discovered under and around them. This column by Wu Liming of
China's state-run People's Daily claims that the Air Defense Identification
Zone it has set up encompassing the islands is a legitimate act of sovereignty
that the U.S. and its allies exercise on a regular basis, and that it is U.S. and Japanese double standards that threaten the Asia Pacific - not China's new Air Defense Identification Zone.
BEIJING:
China's announcement of the establishment of an Air Defense Identification Zone
in the East China Sea has drawn criticism from the United States and Japan - wrongly.
The
logic of the two countries is simple: they can do it while China cannot, which might
be characterized by a Chinese saying, "the magistrates are free to burn
down houses, while the common people are forbidden to even light their lamps."
Everyone
knows that the United States was among
the first to set up an air defense zone in 1950, and later more than 20
countries followed suit, which at all times Washington has taken for granted.
However,
as soon as China starts doing so, Washington immediately voices various
"concerns." U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday voiced his
distress over the zone, fearing it might "constitute an attempt to change
the status quo in the East China Sea." Now a White House spokesman has called
China's announcement over the weekend "unnecessarily inflammatory."
Japanese
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a session of the Diet that
China's setup of the zone was a "profoundly dangerous act that could cause
unintended consequences," and both Tokyo and Washington said they would ignore
China's demarcation.
In
the 1960s, Japan set up such a zone the even one-sidedly covered China's Diaoyu
Islands [the Senkaku's to the Japanese]. But when
China sets up a zone covering the Diaoyu Islands,
Tokyo immediately announces it as "unacceptable" with Abe calling China's
move "dangerous." This is completely absurd and unreasonable.
In
a word, both Washington and Tokyo are pursuing double standards.
[Editor's
Note: The Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands are
located east of Mainland China, northeast of Taiwan, and west of Okinawa. ...
After it was discovered in 1968 that oil reserves might be found under the sea
near the islands and following the transfer of administration from the United
States to Japan in 1971,ChinaandTaiwan challenged Japan's sovereignty. Beijing claim China discovered
and controlled the islands from the 14th century. Japan controlled the islands
from 1895 until its surrender at the end of World War II. The United States
administered them from 1945 to 1972, when they reverted to Japanese control.]
The
Diaoyu Islands issue is obviously at the core of the
air defense zone announcement. It is known to all that the Japanese side is
responsible for the worsening in the situation and is the one jeopardizing stability
in East Asia, and that China is being forced to respond to safeguard its
territorial integrity.
In
their statements, both Washington and Tokyo accuse China of undermining the
stability of the Asia-Pacific by so doing, but in fact it is just the opposite
- Washington and Tokyo pose the threat.
Posted By Worldmeets.US
U.S.
National Security Advisor Susan Rice recently reiterated that Washington will
deploy 60 percent of its naval forces to the Pacific, and will provide more
advanced weapons to its armed forces.
For
Japan, Abe has taken a series of worrisome actions, including boosting Japan's
military budget for the first time in 11 years, staging more military exercises,
and even openly announcing its intention to revise Japan's pacifist
constitution.
The
Diaoyu Islands are an inherent part of Chinese
territory, so it is natural for China's East China Sea Air Defense
Identification Zone to cover that area.
Therefore,
it is Washington and Tokyo who are indulging in the trick of calling white
black - and it is high time they stopped.
