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Sino-Japanese Energy Security and Regional Stability: The Case of the East China Sea Gas Exploration

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Abstract

The Sino-Japanese dispute over the East China Sea maritime resources was triggered by the unsettled maritime boundary and the territorial dispute over the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. The dispute has been ascribed by many to intensified competition between China and Japan over energy supply. However this article attributes the fundamental cause of the conflict to power politics and political distrust, which are deemed to have the key role in preventing the two governments from finding a solution. The article analyses the origin and the causes responsible for the Sino-Japanese dispute over the East China Sea gas exploration, and then proceeds to investigate the diplomatic dialogues to reveal the key obstacles in the process.

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Notes

  1. Around the early 1970s, the Japanese government had twice turned down applications by a few Japanese oil companies, including Teikoku Oil, for exploration rights in the area, due to the unsettled EEZ demarcation.

  2. A Shinto temple enshrined 2.47 million Japanese war dead from mid 19th Century, including 14 Class-A war criminals such as Hideki Tojo.

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Magazines and Newspapers

  1. Agence France-Presse (AFP)

  2. Asian Times (AT)

  3. The Associated Press (AP)

  4. The Asahi Shimbun (Asahi)

  5. BBC News (BBC)

  6. BBC Monitoring – Energy (Monitoring)

  7. Beijing Review (BR)

  8. China Daily (CD)

  9. China News Week (CNW)

  10. The Economist

  11. Interfax – China Energy Report Weekly (Interfax)

  12. International Herald Tribune (IHT).

  13. The Japan Times (JT)

  14. Kyodo News Agency (Kyodo)

  15. Mainichi Shimbun (Mainichi)

  16. Ming Bao

  17. People’s Daily (PD)

  18. South China Morning Post (SCMP)

  19. VOA News (VOA)

  20. Washington Post (WP)

  21. Washington Times (WT)

  22. Xinhua News Agency (Xinhua)

  23. Yomiuri Shimbun (Yomiuri)

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Acknowledgements

I wish to express my appreciation for the comments by the two reviewers on the draft of the article. I would also like to thank Dr Arthur Warden for his valuable input and assistance in revision process.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CEPMLP, University of Dundee, Carnegie Building, Room 1.12, Dundee, DD1 4HN, UK

    Janet Xuanli Liao

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  1. Janet Xuanli Liao
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Correspondence to Janet Xuanli Liao.

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Liao, J.X. Sino-Japanese Energy Security and Regional Stability: The Case of the East China Sea Gas Exploration. East Asia 25, 57–78 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12140-007-9035-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12140-007-9035-7

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