Taiwan proposes “sharing” the Diaoyu / Senkaku to avoid tensions

TAIWAN - CHINA - JAPAN

President Ma Ying-jeou has launched a peace offering to the governments of mainland China and Japan: "Going forward in this way we risk an escalation that no one wants and that is not helpful. Let's go back to the negotiating table, leaving aside the issue of sovereignty and transforming it from a missed opportunity into an opportunity. "


Taipei (AsiaNews) - The way to resolve the standoff over the disputed archipelago in the East China Sea - which the Chinese call "Diaoyu" and the Japanese "Senkaku" - "passes through dialogue. Sovereignty is a concept that by its very nature is indivisible: for this reason, in this case it must be set aside in favor of a common sharing of the archipelago's resources. " This is the recipe presented by the President of Taiwan, the Nationalist Ma Ying-jeou, to parties to the dispute.


The issue is long-standing. The group of islands belonged to China for several centuries. During the Ming dynasty they were discovered and inhabited by Chinese citizens, who held possession. However, the invasion of the mainland BY Japanese during World War II changed the question of legal sovereignty when after the defeat, the United States handed over sovereignty to Tokyo, which awarded the territorial sovereignty to the Prefecture of Okinawa .

Despite international agreements, first in Cairo and then Potsdam, world powers left the situation unchanged. Also because the group of islands is very small, almost deserted and without any particular importance. The international community, committed to the reconstruction of Europe and the emergence of the Cold War, preferred to forget.

This behavior has resulted in different tensions, which have festered over time. Although the value of the archipelago is not clear, it is believed to be rich in natural resources. In fact, the territorial claims of China emerged only after the '60s, when American experts discovered significant deposits of oil and gas in the seabed. Without a doubt the archipelago is very important from the military and strategic point of view. Finally there is the question of nationalism, which seems to be almost violently back in vogue. After bilateral provocation citizens of mainland China arrived at burning cars and symbols of the Land of the Rising Sun.

According to Taiwan - which has hoisted its flag on the disputed land along with that of mainland China and Hong Kong - the situation can only be resolved through dialogue. President Ma has asked Beijing and Tokyo to "abandon the individual intentions and seek together a Code of Conduct for the joint exploitation of the territory. In this way you can save valuable assets for all without going to damaging extremes."
The Director-General for Treaties and Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Taiwan, Perry Pei-hwang Shen, told AsiaNews: "We really believe that is the only way to proceed in a meaningful way. The alternative is so extreme that I do not want to even think about it. The governments of mainland China and Japan should listen to us, in order to turn a situation where everyone loses into a winning situation for everyone."