Map bolsters Japan claims in dispute with China over uninhabited islands

[ErnstBlofeld]

East Asia Intel.com:

classified Chinese government map from 1969 bolsters Japanese claims to sovereignty over the disputed Senkaku islands, a chain of small uninhabited islands claimed by Japan, China and Taiwan.


A 1969 official map produced by the PRC map authority lists the islands as “Senkakus” a designation changed in 1970 by China to Daiyu.

Japan has claimed the islands as its territory since World War II and its sovereignty was even recognized as such in China's Communist Party People's Daily many years ago when Taiwan sought to claim the islands.

The dispute has heated up since Sept. 7 when a Chinese fishing boat rammed two Japanese patrol boats resulting in the arrest of the captain.

China’s government is demanding that the captain be released with a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman stating: "The Diaoyu Islands have always been Chinese territory since ancient times, and this is the fact that nobody can ever change."

"China owns indisputable sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands," the statement continued. "The Chinese government's will and determination to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity is firm and unshakable."

The map was first disclosed last week by The Washington Times.