China-Japan Conflict over the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands

Anna Costa completed her doctorate at the University of Hong Kong. Her research centres on the contemporary international relations of East Asia. She is an Honorary Assistant Professor of the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, Department of Modern China Studies, of The University of Hong Kong.

• CONTENTS Acknowledgements Abbreviations CHAPTER ONE: Contested Territory The dispute: what it is and why it matters An expression of competitive politics in East Asia Mining data on the dispute Legal, historical and geographical evidence brought to sovereignty claim Japan’s official position The PRC’s official position The US official position CHAPTER TWO: Neo-Classical Realism and Managed Strategic Confrontation Theorizing foreign policyNeoclassical realism China and Japan as ‘useful rivals’: managed strategic confrontation A focus on nationalism Foreign and Security Policy Actors CHAPTER THREE: The Islands’ Economic and Strategic Value Economic value of the islands: EEZ and resource exploitationStrategic value of the islands The islands and China’s growing maritime power The islands and Japan’s shift towards greater activism CHAPTER FOUR: The Cold War Phase of the Dispute 1970s—Scrambling for oil or global recognition? The islands and the reversion of Okinawa (1971) The islands, diplomatic normalisation (1972) and the Treaty of Peace and Friendship (1978) Analysis: the islands are neither a priority, nor are they in reach The islands, US ambivalence and the Taiwan issue The islands and peripheral Chinese nationalism 1980s: Bilateral tensions and quiet around the islands CHAPTER FIVE: The Post-Cold War Phase of the Dispute 1990 and 1996 cycles of the islands crisis: bilateral restraint 2004-2005 cycle of the islands crisis: Beijing sanctions limited domestic activism 2010 cycle: the issue becomes highly politicized 2012 cycle: Japan’s transfer of ownership Crisis