Cogito Ergo Non Serviam

Obama Says Senkaku Islands Covered by US-Japan Defense Treaty

President Obama is on the trip to Japan that he had to cancel 7 months ago due to the Republican Party's love of government shutdowns. In an interview before he even arrived, Mr. Obama stated that the US is on Japan's side in a dispute over some islands in the South China Sea. This will, no doubt, annoy the Chinese, whom Mr. Obama is not visiting on this journey and who claim the islands are theirs. One must wonder if this is another redline laid out by the White House, and if so, how serious is the administration.

The Senkaku Islands, called the Diaoyu Islands by China (both the Beijing and Taipei varieties), are uninhabited, but the Japanese did have a fishing operation there prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor. The islands came under American control in 1945, and they were returned to Japan in 1972. These five islands and three barren rocks are technically under the authority of the Mayor of Ishigaki.

The Beijing-Taipei claim is clearly not as strong under international law. Both governments began to assert claims about the same time that the US handed the islands back to Japan. Under international law, any claim the Chinese might have had was extinguished when the US gave the islands to Japan. And after a quick reading of the historical record, China's claim rested on fables and outdated statements of government officials. The Japanese actually used the islands for something, demonstrating the necessary animus to govern them.

Be that as it may, the Chinese want control of the islands and have rattled sabres to underscore their intent. Chinese-flagged ships have crossed what Japan and international law say are Japanese territorial waters off the islands. Last year, Beijing declared an air defense identification zone over the islands -- an act roundly condemned in the region.

Mr. Obama could not have been any clearer on where America stands in this dispute. The US opposes "any unilateral attempts to undermine Japan's administration of these islands," he wrote in the Yomiuri Shimbun. He added, "The policy of the United States is clear - the Senkaku Islands are administered by Japan and therefore fall within the scope of Article 5 of the US-Japan Treaty of Mutual Co-operation and Security." Not only are the islands Japanese, but the US will help defend them as if they were the Japanese home islands themselves.

Critics of American foreign policy have rightly stated that this White House has a bad habit of declaring redlines beyond which adversaries are not to go. Then, the adversary crosses the line without any consequences. However, the lines set out so far have been in places where the United States has very few if any strategic interests. Libya, Syria and Ukraine are simply not that important.

Japan is another matter entirely. The entire post-war arrangement has been that the US will defend Japan from all threats, and in exchange, Japan does not develop the military offensive capacity to threaten its neighbors. Japan's neighbors have been content with this for a lifetime.

If China should decide to escalate this dispute, America may have to face off against the Chinese, which would be bad for everyone. Or America may have to wiggle out of its commitment to Japan, which would result in Japanese re-armament,which would be bad as well. One hopes the Chinese choose not to risk the stability of East Asia over these worthless rocks.

© Copyright 2014 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Ubuntu Linux.



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