The Wire

A small cluster of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea is once again a potential flashpoint between China and Japan. The islands, called “Diaoyu” by China and “Senkakus” by Japan, have been a source of tension between China and Japan for hundreds of years. Various maps, documents and treaties have alternatively placed the islands under Taiwanese, Chinese and Japanese control.

However, the dispute has intensified since resources were found, and the islands reverted back to Japanese control in the early 1970s. In recent months protests over the islands have erupted in China and Japan. Some experts say politicians in both countries are using the dispute for their own ends.But is the significance of the islands just about resources and history, or is there more to the story?