[Spartacus]

Have you guys ever had this feeling where at another part of the world, it seems like a whole new "World War" is going to start?

And we're here trying to start scrims...

BEIJING — Around 1,000 Chinese fishing boats are expected to arrive in waters near the Senkaku Islands claimed by China later Monday, the state-run China National Radio reported, in what may be Beijing's additional countermeasures over Japan's nationalization of the islets.

If a large number of Chinese vessels intrude into Japanese territorial waters around the Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea, it could trigger unexpected incidents such as clashes with Japan Coast Guard patrol ships, further escalating tensions between the two countries.

The radio station said in an online edition that Chinese fisheries authorities will monitor the fishing boats' activities near the uninhabited islets, which Beijing calls Diaoyu, via a marine observation satellite.
The 1,000 boats from coastal provinces such as Zhejiang and Fujian may be joined by six Chinese surveillance ships that have been staying in nearby waters since intruding into Japanese territorial waters near the islands Friday.

Meanwhile, anti-Japan protests continued in Beijing for the seventh straight day on Monday, but were much smaller than the mass demonstrations — some violent — that took place across China over the weekend.
As police tightened security around the Japanese Embassy, about 200 people on Monday marched on a street in front of the embassy, protesting the Japanese government's announcement on Tuesday last week that it put the islands under state control by signing a purchase contract with the owner of three of the islands, a Japanese individual.

Some of the protests on Saturday and Sunday involved vandalism, looting and arson targeting Japanese factories, stores and restaurants operating in the country.

Anti-Japan protests are likely to continue up to the 81st anniversary on Tuesday of the start of the 1931 Mukden Incident, also known as the Manchurian Incident, in which the Imperial Japanese Army blew up a Japanese railway in southern Manchuria to serve as a pretext for invading northeastern China.

Japan maintains the Senkaku Islands are an integral part of Japanese territory and that there are no territorial disputes between the two countries. Taiwan also claims sovereignty over the islands, which are known as Tiaoyutai to the Taiwanese.

well fuck.

Yeah, I don't think it will turn out that bad though. :p


These little conflicts have been happening in the area for the last few years. (*) With China's growing economy comes a natural thirst for influence/power. They aspire to become a country with power-projection capabilities, but at the moment they can barely exert full control just outside of their own borders.

The current dominant power in the Pacific is the US, and its allies (Japan, South-Korea, Tawain, etc...). They're obviously aware of China's growing ambitions and are preparing themselves for it. Not just the US, but also its allies. Military expenditures by these countries have gone up a lot in the last years. What if the US will no longer have full dominance in the Western Pacific in the future (talking long-long term here), will they keep aligning themselves with the US, or will they be forced to make the move towards China?
For example Taiwan: so far they're backed by the US. But will that situation stay the same knowing that Taiwan lies just outside of China, an emerging world power claiming the island.


*
http://moralagency.wordpress.com/2010/08/01/beijing-claims-indisputable-sovereignty-over-south-china-sea/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/china-warns-us-in-island-dispute/2011/06/22/AGTiVxfH_story.html
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/5034/philippines-to-seek-more-oil-in-west-philippine-sea
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20110414-331090/Philippines-protests-Chinas-Spratly-claim-at-UN
http://maritimesecurity.asia/free-2/south-china-sea-2/india-vietnam-sign-oil-exploration-agreement-ignoring-china’s-objections/
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-26/s-china-sea-oil-rush-risks-clashes-as-u-s-emboldens-vietnam.html

Double post

"Japanese military officials said they were keeping a close eye on seven Chinese warships spotted in waters off a southern island Tuesday. It was unclear whether the ship movements were related to a territorial dispute that has prompted both countries to show off their maritime muscles.
[SIZE=12px]The Chinese ships were sighted about 49 kilometers (30 miles) from the island of Yonaguni, in Japan's Okinawa prefecture (state), according to Japan's Defense Ministry. They were about 200 kilometers (125 miles) from a chain of small islands that have sparked a heated dispute between Japan and China.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]The ships were believed to be returning to China after training in the Pacific.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]Defense Minister Satoshi Morimoto said Japan is monitoring the ships' movement. Japan considers the area part of its contiguous waters, but it is not illegal for foreign vessels to transit them.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]It is not unusual for the Chinese navy to transit waters around Okinawa en route to the Pacific, but this is the first such operation observed this year, according to public broadcaster NHK. The ships included frigates, a guided missile destroyer, a refueler and two submarine rescue vessels.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]It was unclear if their mission was directly related to the territorial issue, or whether they were trying to avoid an approaching typhoon.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]Japan angered China last month by nationalizing part of a chain of East China Sea islands called Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese. The move sparked violent protests in China.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]Nearby Taiwan also claims the islands, which are uninhabited but surrounded by rich fishing grounds and possibly lucrative undersea energy deposits.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]China and Japan have recently stepped up naval activities in the area around Okinawa because of the dispute, but there have been no clashes between their warships, which have generally stayed away from the islands themselves.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]Wary of missteps that could lead to a sudden escalation of tensions, the countries have instead sent less threatening coast guard ships. Over the past week, however, both have made a point of showing off their naval prowess.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]Chinese websites were abuzz Monday with photographs showing navy pilots practicing touch-and-go landing exercises on China's first aircraft carrier. It wasn't clear when the pictures were taken, and they did not appear on the Defense Ministry's website or in official media.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]The carrier was launched last month without aircraft or an accompanying battle group, and actual flight operations could be years away. But it is widely seen as a symbol of China's ambitions to be a leading Asian naval power, especially as it faces sharpening territorial conflicts with Japan and other countries.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]Japan's navy, meanwhile, marked its 60th anniversary with a major exercise on Sunday.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]About 40 ships — including state-of-the-art destroyers, hovercraft able to launch assaults on rough coastlines and new conventionally powered submarines — took part in Fleet Review 2012, the maritime equivalent of a military parade.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12px]About 30 naval aircraft, mostly helicopters, also participated. For the first time, Japan's navy was joined by warships from the United States, Singapore and Australia. Representatives from more than 20 countries, including China, attended the event staged in waters south of Tokyo."[/SIZE]


http://hosted2.ap.org/OREUG/86053d8662944f7698388c63189f97c6/Article_2012-10-16-Japan-China Ships/id-4547a5970ba44f70896d812a95fa1257

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/07/06/2003447948