The US Must First Acknowledge that Diaoyutai is Disputed Territory

The US Must First Acknowledge that Diaoyutai is Disputed Territory
United Daily News editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China)
A Translation
November 27, 2013

Summary: The confrontation between Mainland China and Japan over the Diaoyutai Islands is on the verge of burning out of control. The financial magazine Forbes has warned the U.S. government this amounts to gross diplomatic negligence and incompetence. It could harm the entire world, and lead to disastrous consequences. The United States must return to its "We do not hold any position on the sovereignty of the Diaoyutai Islands" stance.

Full Text below:

The confrontation between Mainland China and Japan over the Diaoyutai Islands is on the verge of burning out of control. The financial magazine Forbes has warned the U.S. government this amounts to gross diplomatic negligence and incompetence. It could harm the entire world, and lead to disastrous consequences.

The Sino-Japanese conflict has steadily escalated. If it chooses to, the US can apply the brakes. Its first action should be to urge the parties to shelve the dispute. Japan, the Mainland, Taiwan, and the United States should agree that Diaoyutai sovereignty is currently in dispute. All parties must acknowledge that "Diaoyutai is territory over which controversy has yet to be settled."

The Diaoyutai Islands issue arose when the U.S. "turned over" the Diaoyutai Islands to the Japanese in 1972. But from the very beginning the United States has declared that it holds no position on who holds sovereignty over the island. It merely turned over "administrative jurisdiction" to Japan. Therefore Japan's current declaration of "sovereignty over the Diaoyutai Islands" has already exceeded the United States' understanding and commitment. If the United States were to actually argue that Japan holds sovereignty over the Diaoyutai Islands, it would provoke as well as become involved in a Sino-Japanese War. The United States cannot get away with such a lie. It amounts to a slap to its own face. Once the US has harmed the world by precipitating a catastrophe, it will have to answer to world opinion.

The United States must return to its original "We do not hold any position on the sovereignty of the Diaoyutai Islands" stance. It must acknowledge that Diaoyutai Islands sovereignty remains in dispute. The creator of the problem should resolve the problem. The US and Japan both allege that Beijing's announcement of an air defense identification zone changed the status quo. In fact Japan was the party that changed the status quo, when it "nationalized" the Diaoyutai Islands last September. Since then Mainland Chinese and Japanese planes and ships have clashed repeatedly in the waters around and the air above the Diaoyutai Islands to assert sovereignty. This is why Beijing's announced air defense identification zone must be regarded as merely a means of maintaining the status quo. Japan had already included the Diaoyutai Islands in its air defense identification zone. Had Beijing failed to make an equivalent response by including the Diaoyutai Islands, it would have failed to preserve Diaoyutai Island's disputed status. The United States has already said "We do not hold any position on Diaoyutai Islands sovereignty." Therefore it should not bias its position in favor of either China or Japan. It should acknowledge that China and Japan dispute the islands' sovereignty. It should attempt to guide the two parties to shelve the sovereignty dispute and jointly develop the Diaoyutai Islands' resources. It should guide the two parties toward a compromise settlement.

The United States says, on the one hand that it holds no position on the sovereignty of the Diaoyutai Islands. But on the other hand it encourages Japan to use the US-Japan Security Treaty to escalate the sovereignty conflict. Is this not a contradiction? The United States declared a "Return to Asia" for the purpose of "rebalancing." Its motive should have been the pursuit of peace and a win-win scenario for Asia. Instead it has provided the accelerant for a Sino-Japanese conflict. It has put the United States itself in jeopardy. Once it triggers military, political, and economic disaster, how will it answer to the people of Mainland China, Japan, and Taiwan, let alone to the American people? It actions will go down as an shameful debacle in America's history.

China and Japan have apparently begun a game of "Chicken." Two cars race toward a precipice. The driver who leaps from his car first is the chicken. But the potential for war may persuade the parties to be more cautious, and avoid touching off armed conflict. Even if China and Japan only engage in limited war, the damage to international political stability and economic prosperity would be inestimable. It is more likely that Japan would provoke a conflict. A democracy is more susceptible to populist sentiment. Paradoxically Beijing's authoritarianism may be better able to exercise self-restraint. Once the shooting begins, Japan's political and economic wounds will probably be more serious. Similarly, democracy is less able to withstand political and economic impacts than authoritarianism.

If the United States government wants to use the Diaoyutai Islands as a pretext to "Return to Asia" or engage in "Rebalancing," it is barking up the wrong tree. If the Japanese government under Abe wants to use the Diaoyutai Islands as a pretext to "contain China," it is playing with fire. The Diaoyutai Islands status quo has already been upset by Ishihara's "nationalization." Abe wants to change the Diaoyutai Islands status quo by changing Japan's "peace constitution" on which its peace and prosperity depend. If it succeeds, the Abe government will go down in infamy. Abe must not drag the United States down with it. Abe must not shove the United States into the inferno ahead of it.

As for Taiwan, Japan's air defense identification zone has already intruded into Diaoyutai Island waters. Yet no one on Taiwan has uttered a peep. Taiwan's own air defense identification zone actually excludes the Diaoyutai Islands. Yet no one utters a peep. Taiwan has taken advantage of the heightened conflict between Mainland China and Japan to conclude a "Taiwan-Japan Fisheries Agreement." It became the biggest beneficiary. It is the proverbial fisherman who benefitted from the struggle between the crane and the clam. It should not gloat over this victory. It should use Taiwan's position to maintain the "disputed status quo." Taiwan must realize that its strength alone is not enough to perpetuate the conflict.

The United States must return to its "We do not hold any position on the sovereignty of the Diaoyutai Islands" stance. Let all parties first accept the fact that the status quo is an ongoing dispute over sovereignty. After all, one must first acknowledge the existence of a dispute before one can sit down at the negotiating table and begin reconciliation.

美國應先承認釣魚台的「爭議現狀」
【聯合報╱社論】
2013.11.27 03:35 am

中國大陸與日本在釣魚台的對峙已經進入一觸即發的狀態，美國媒體《富比士》警告美國政府：這是美國在外交上的嚴重過失與無能，很可能貽害世界，並造成災難性後果。

然而，在中日衝突危機節節升高之際，能夠發生煞車作用的還是美國。美國第一個動作，應該力促爭執的各方──日、陸、台，包括美國自己在內，先共同接受釣魚台的「爭議現狀」。亦即共同承認：「釣魚台為議論未定的是非之地。」

釣魚台問題源自美國在一九七二年將釣魚台「移交」給日本。但是，美國卻自始對釣島的主權歸屬「不持立場」，而稱只是將「行政管轄權」移交日本。亦即，即使從美國的地位而言，日本今天主張「對釣魚台擁有主權」，已逾越了美國的認知與承諾。而美國倘竟因日本主張「對釣島擁有主權」而掀起並捲入了中日戰爭，則美國非但不能自圓其說，而簡直是自批其頰；一旦「貽害世界／造成災難性後果」，其嚴重性更非止將面對世界輿論的矢石交加而已。

美國必須回到「對釣魚台主權不持立場」的原點，也就是必須承認釣島的「爭議現狀」。此所謂解鈴還須繫鈴人。美日皆稱，北京此次公告「防空識別區」為「改變現狀」，但首先「改變現狀」的卻是日本去年九月將釣島「國有化」。此後，中日機艦就在釣島海空尬來尬去，均在「宣示主權」。準此而言，北京公告防空識別區的動作，也只能視為「維持現狀」的措施；畢竟日本早已將釣魚台劃入其防空識別區，北京若不相對作出因應也將釣魚台劃入，即不能維持釣魚台的「爭議現狀」。對美國而言，既稱「對釣魚台主權不持立場」，即不應對中日的主權立場有所偏倚；反而應當承認中日雙方對主權立場的「爭議現狀」，然後設法引導雙方「擱置主權爭議／共享釣島利益」，也就是引導雙方共創「退而求其次」的和解方案。

可是，美國現今的做法卻是：一方面「對釣島主權不持立場」，但另一方面卻坐視、甚至以《美日安保條約》鼓動日方升高「主權衝突」，這豈非自相矛盾？其實，美國宣示「重返亞洲」，建構「再平衡」，所追求的應是亞洲的和平共贏，倘若如今竟成為引爆中日衝突的助燃劑，且使美國自身陷入危境，一旦引發軍事、政治及經濟上的大災難，非但對中、日、台的人民不能交代，也對美國人民不能交代，更將鑄成美國的歷史錯誤與恥辱。

中日雙方似已進入博弈理論的「懦夫賽局」：兩部車子飆向懸崖，視誰先跳車為「懦夫」。然而，愈是可能引爆戰爭，也可能愈促使各方產生警覺，避免輕易引爆武裝衝突。但即使「大戰」的可能性不大，只要中日開火，縱使只是有限戰爭，其在國際政治及國際經濟上的衝擊與傷害皆是不可輕估的。就大局來看，日本開釁的可能性似乎較大，因為民主政治較易出現民粹性的行險，北京的專制反而可能自我節制；而一旦開火後，日本在政治及經濟上所受傷害亦較大，同理是因民主政治在政經衝擊上的承受力不如專制政治。

因而，美國若以釣魚台為「重返亞洲」、「再平衡」的籌碼，顯係文不對題；而日本安倍政府若竟欲以釣魚台為「圍堵中國」的題材，更不啻玩火自焚。釣魚台的「現狀」已因石原慎太郎的「國有化」而敗亂至今；倘若安倍又因欲改變釣島之「現狀」，而致「改變」了日本賴以國泰民安的《和平憲法》，安倍政府必將成為日本歷史之罪人。總之，安倍不能拖美國下水，美國也不能推安倍入火坑。

至於台灣，日本的防空識別區早已將釣魚台海域劃進去，台灣無人吭聲；台灣自己的防空識別區，卻竟將釣魚台劃在外頭，也無人吭聲。台灣趁大陸與日本升高釣島衝突之際，完成了《台日漁業協定》，成為最大的受益者。漁翁既已得利，就不要妄論鷸蚌之爭，而當知「維持爭議現狀」之必要，亦應知僅憑台灣一己之力不足「維持爭議」。

美國必須回到「對釣魚台主權不持立場」的原點，讓各方先皆接受「主權爭議現狀」；畢竟，先承認了「爭議」之存在，始有坐上談判桌共商和解方案的可能性。