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Because Japan has a dispute with China on other islands. I never said they would try to claim the spartlys. Heavy Japan alliance with Phillippines is unlikely

Because Japan has a dispute with China on other islands. I never said they would try to claim the spartlys. Heavy Japan alliance with Phillippines is unlikely (history, empire of japan, blah blah). It's not about anti-japanese sentiment here but more like japanese fear of revenge from chinese and maybe the right time to make a point. The more passive-aggressive China is the more likely it's that Korea and Japan will do something about it.

Xixi 11y ago
I quote you: "I predict Japan will try to push forward and claim the disputed islands with the support of uncle Sam." Which islands were you thinking about? Japan has three notable territorial conflicts: the Kuril islands with Russia (controlled by Russia), the Senkaku islands with China (controlled by Japan) and the Takeshima islands (controlled by Korea). Of these three conflicts the ones with Korea and Russia are largely under the radar: most Japanese people I know aren't even aware of them. Though I think the reverse is not true in Korea... And Japan cannot "push forward and claim" the Senkaku: they are already controlling them.
- honest_joe 11y ago
  They do not really control the senkaku islands. At least not from chinese POV :P And yes Dokdo (Takeshima in Japan) is a big thing in Korea.
  - Xixi 11y ago
    Controlling is not really a matter of point of view. It's a matter of patrolling, and sending boats away if they are not allowed in the area, etc. Japan inherited this control from the US, and China is perfectly allowed to dispute ownership of the islands. But claiming that Japan is not -at present- controlling the islands is simply not correct. The Liancourt Rocks case is interesting, because it is so asymmetric: all the Korean people I know feel so strongly about it, but none of the Japanese people I know either know or care about it. If I were in Japan I would try to give up all claims on Dokdo as part of a wider friendship treaty with Korea, and try to prop up the relations between the two countries. But Japanese politicians are questionable at best, and Korean politicians seem to enjoy Japan bashing, so I doubt it will happen in the foreseeable future...
    - honest_joe 11y ago
      Japan"bought" the islands from private owners (funny right?). I do not feel that there will ever be any real friendship between these two countries. I would compare it to polish russian relationship. Koreans have every right to feel strong about it. Every damn right. But this is a discussion for another evening. And replying to your comments above i was talking about the situation in asia in general. You should also know that Korea donated a war ship to Philippines. Do you think this gesture did not have anything to do with the situation in the area ? I very much doubt so.
      - Xixi 11y ago
        The state of France in my hometown recently sold a former military estate to a private company to build a hotel: I don't see what's funny about it, or what it has to do with sovereignty. I don't know where you are from, but I am sure the state sometimes buy or sell lands/assets there too. The state of Japan bought the islands to prevent promoters from exploiting them, to try to maintain the status quo with China. Obviously it was a failure, and outright buying the islands was not a good solution. But the liberal Japanese government at that time was very inexperienced: I don't think Abe for example -despite being a nationalist- would have done the same mistake. I am from Europe, and I do not share your pessimism about Asia. The city where I'm born switched between France and Germany at least four times over the last 150 years. Hell, there is not a single border on the continent that makes sense. Peace and "friendship" between states is a political construct, built strictly out of political will, the rest is nationalist bullshit. That's true of Poland and Russia too.

Xixi 11y ago

I quote you: "I predict Japan will try to push forward and claim the disputed islands with the support of uncle Sam." Which islands were you thinking about? Japan has three notable territorial conflicts: the Kuril islands with Russia (controlled by Russia), the Senkaku islands with China (controlled by Japan) and the Takeshima islands (controlled by Korea). Of these three conflicts the ones with Korea and Russia are largely under the radar: most Japanese people I know aren't even aware of them. Though I think the reverse is not true in Korea... And Japan cannot "push forward and claim" the Senkaku: they are already controlling them.

honest_joe 11y ago
They do not really control the senkaku islands. At least not from chinese POV :P And yes Dokdo (Takeshima in Japan) is a big thing in Korea.
- Xixi 11y ago
  Controlling is not really a matter of point of view. It's a matter of patrolling, and sending boats away if they are not allowed in the area, etc. Japan inherited this control from the US, and China is perfectly allowed to dispute ownership of the islands. But claiming that Japan is not -at present- controlling the islands is simply not correct. The Liancourt Rocks case is interesting, because it is so asymmetric: all the Korean people I know feel so strongly about it, but none of the Japanese people I know either know or care about it. If I were in Japan I would try to give up all claims on Dokdo as part of a wider friendship treaty with Korea, and try to prop up the relations between the two countries. But Japanese politicians are questionable at best, and Korean politicians seem to enjoy Japan bashing, so I doubt it will happen in the foreseeable future...
  - honest_joe 11y ago
    Japan"bought" the islands from private owners (funny right?). I do not feel that there will ever be any real friendship between these two countries. I would compare it to polish russian relationship. Koreans have every right to feel strong about it. Every damn right. But this is a discussion for another evening. And replying to your comments above i was talking about the situation in asia in general. You should also know that Korea donated a war ship to Philippines. Do you think this gesture did not have anything to do with the situation in the area ? I very much doubt so.
    - Xixi 11y ago
      The state of France in my hometown recently sold a former military estate to a private company to build a hotel: I don't see what's funny about it, or what it has to do with sovereignty. I don't know where you are from, but I am sure the state sometimes buy or sell lands/assets there too. The state of Japan bought the islands to prevent promoters from exploiting them, to try to maintain the status quo with China. Obviously it was a failure, and outright buying the islands was not a good solution. But the liberal Japanese government at that time was very inexperienced: I don't think Abe for example -despite being a nationalist- would have done the same mistake. I am from Europe, and I do not share your pessimism about Asia. The city where I'm born switched between France and Germany at least four times over the last 150 years. Hell, there is not a single border on the continent that makes sense. Peace and "friendship" between states is a political construct, built strictly out of political will, the rest is nationalist bullshit. That's true of Poland and Russia too.