By You have to wonder why the Japanese government decided to push this issue when they did not have the political will to follow through on the prosecution?:
A diplomatic showdown between Japan and China that began two weeks ago with the arrest of the captain of a Chinese trawler near disputed islands ended Friday when Tokyo accepted Beijing’s demands for his immediate release, a concession that appeared to mark a humiliating retreat in a Pacific test of wills.
Japan freed the captain, Zhan Qixiong, 41, who left Saturday on a chartered flight sent by the Chinese government to take him home. Mr. Zhan had been held by the Japanese authorities since his boat collided with Japanese patrol vessels on Sept. 7 near uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, and Japan had insisted that he would be prosecuted.
His release handed a significant victory to Chinese leaders, who have ratcheted up the pressure on Japan with verbal threats and economic sanctions. [New York Times]
It definitely appears to be amateur hour in Japan while the Chinese government has scored a huge creditability win with their domestic population. ROK Drop readers may remember that South Korea has had problems with these Chinese fishing boats as well to include them killing a Korean Coast Guard officer. This latest victory over Japan will probably only make the Chinese fishermen even more aggressive knowing that the Chinese government will continue to back them.
3:47 pm on September 24th, 2010 1
The reason why? They're too heavily invested in China. China has South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and a number of other countries by the economic cojones.
4:41 pm on September 24th, 2010 2
Kushibo, I think you can add the US to that list too. Being over here, it's pretty easy to see the Chinese getting more and more bold by the day, but I'm not sure it's making the news the way it should back in the states. Unless there is a concerted effort by several nations to mitigate their ambitions, I think things will get ugly sooner than people expect. Perhaps a move on Taiwan?
6:31 pm on September 24th, 2010 3
Maybe a new cold war is coming. There's reason to hope that, this time, the Russians will be on our side.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/23/world/europe/23…
When I try to look at the world from the Russian leaders' point of view, I see a crazy Iran and an aggressive China as greater dangers than a declining US. Anyhow, that's how I imagine they see it. I can have my fantasies, can't I?
7:11 pm on September 24th, 2010 4
Jjankes are getting bold by the day. But what can the US do, when the Jjankes got you guys by the pocket? Suck it up guys, you made your bed now you got to lie on it.
10:44 pm on September 24th, 2010 5
Guess nobody learned anything from 1938 Munich…
11:27 pm on September 24th, 2010 6
PBAR,
"Guess nobody learned anything from 1938 Munich…"
How can you say that? That's simply not true.
The Chinese learned something.
12:47 am on September 25th, 2010 7
Tom, once again you are wrong. The Chinese do not fish anywhere the US. They only fish in or near the waters of their weak neighbors. Truth be told, the US cancelled naval operations in the West sea at Korea's behest. The US is putting the squeeze on the Yuan, but that is certainly going to cause the rest of the world to cry because of higher prices. The Korean's will continue to take Chinese rice and label it as Korean rice. They will continue to use cheap Jo sun chok labor and continue using Chinese factories. I also saw on the news today about the properties in Seoul that can't sell. Tom, why does South Korea let the Chinese kill their Coast Guard Officers and do nothing about it? Why does South Korea allow the North Korean to kill 45 and they do nothing about it? Why does South Korea elect a president who wants to build a ditch through a country that is a peninsula? Tom, bend over because China is going to cufk you pretty hard.
7:55 am on September 25th, 2010 8
When I watch CCTV (TV in English from China) I get a whole different view of world events than lets say Fox, BBC, or CNN.
I agree China seems to be getting bold but have little to compare their current ego with. However, the past revolutions were pretty "bold" also.
12:27 pm on September 25th, 2010 9
Talk about your "brilliant" Chinese, take a look at this article. " Chinese tourists flock to girls’ college in Seoul " http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/…
12:28 pm on September 25th, 2010 10
Ever been to China? I have. We hear about how Beijing is a modern city, but that's only true if you ignore that the trees lining the highway from the airport to downtown Beijing were planted there to hide the slums from your view. It probably wouldn't be wrong to guess that the vast majority of Chinese still live in abject poverty. Fact is, China would never have any economic power abroad if it invested as it should in its citizens' well-being.
1:24 pm on September 25th, 2010 11
Agreed that the Chinese are a disgusting people and their country a poverty of backwardness. They're only powerful now because they are a huge population of colonies like cock roach infestation.
But you guys have to accept the fact (whether you like it or not), that they got your country in their pockets. How long do you think the US will survive without Walmart or Chinese buying US denominated debt? Not very long.
Of course, as Lemmy pointed out, South Korea is in the similar situation. But we accept the fact that we're only 1/50th the population of China, and that it's inevitable that we work with these Chinese, to butter them up, fill them up with hot air, grease their monkey wrenches, smile a hollow smile, suck up to them, and make sure the visiting Chinese are greeted politely – in return for them leaving us alone, and allowing us to continue to make money off of the cock roach country (unlike you guys who are losing bucket loads of money to Chinese, and who are hopelessly indebted to the Chinese). How do you think Korea, as small as it is, has managed to survive all these centuries? It's unfortunate that not only Korea is located next to China, but is also located beside two other superpowers in Japan and Russia. But Koreans know the crafty game that needs to be played to survive in this area, and if it means bending over once in a while or take it on the chin couple of times, then that's a calculated sacrifice that weighs in on the possible consequences of any reactions versus benefits. You have to play this game smart if you are the smallest country in the region.
1:25 pm on September 25th, 2010 12
Agreed that the Chinese are a backward people and their country a poverty of backwardness. They're only powerful now because they are a huge population.
But you guys have to accept the fact (whether you like it or not), that they got your country in their pockets. How long do you think the US will survive without Walmart or Chinese buying US denominated debt? Not very long.
Of course, as Lemmy pointed out, South Korea is in the similar situation. But we accept the fact that we're only 1/50th the population of China, and that it's inevitable that we work with these Chinese, to butter them up, fill them up with hot air, grease their monkey wrenches, smile a hollow smile, suck up to them, and make sure the visiting Chinese are greeted politely – in return for them leaving us alone, and allowing us to continue to make money off of their country (unlike you guys who are losing bucket loads of money to Chinese, and who are hopelessly indebted to the Chinese). How do you think Korea, as small as it is, has managed to survive all these centuries? It's unfortunate that not only Korea is located next to China, but is also located beside two other superpowers in Japan and Russia. But Koreans know the crafty game that needs to be played to survive in this area, and if it means bending over once in a while or take it on the chin couple of times, then that's a calculated sacrifice that weighs in on the possible consequences of any reactions versus benefits. You have to play this game smart if you are the smallest country in the region.
3:16 pm on September 25th, 2010 13
What have you done with the real Tom? Two posts in a row that show reason and constructive criticism, this is not your MO.
4:46 pm on September 25th, 2010 14
Here are excerpts from a story written by Shaun Tandon:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeq…
After China piled pressure on Japan to free a captain captured near disputed islands, the United States said it considered the chain — known as the Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese — to be under Tokyo's administration, meaning that US forces would be obliged by treaty to defend Japan in an attack.
With Southeast Asian nations voicing alarm over Chinese attempts to exert sovereignty in disputed waters, President Barack Obama and regional leaders in a summit Friday called for freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.
The United States also defied Chinese warnings and carried out joint war games with South Korea after accusing Beijing's ally North Korea of sinking a South Korean vessel.
#11 is not the real Tom
"The more they flex their muscle in the South China Sea, the more people dial 911 and hope the (US Navy's) Seventh Fleet will answer. And the same thing with the Japanese," Cossa said.
"I see more and more in Asia a recognition that the United States is going to be a dominant, key player in Asia for at least the better part of the next 40 or 50 years," Campbell said.
Walter Lohman, director of the Asian Studies Center at the conservative Heritage Foundation, said the changing dynamic in Asia has been China's growing assertiveness, not any shift in US policy.
"The Chinese really believe that we are rallying against them," Lohman said. "They're missing a very important point — the Vietnamese are coming to us and the Japanese are coming to us, not the other way around."
5:07 pm on September 25th, 2010 15
#11 Korea has survived?
THE HISTORY OF KOREA: Once upon a time…..
The myth of Korea's foundation by the god-king Tangun in BC 2333 embodies the homogeneity and self-sufficiency valued by the Korean people. Korea experienced many invasions by its larger neighbors in its 2,000 years of recorded history. The country repelled numerous foreign invasions despite domestic strife, in part due to its protected status in the Sino-centric regional political model during Korea's Chosun dynasty (1392-1910). Historical antipathies to foreign influence earned Korea the title of "Hermit Kingdom" in the 19th century.
With declining Chinese power and a weakened domestic posture at the end of the 19th century, Korea was open to Western and Japanese encroachment. In 1910, Japan began a 35-year period of colonial rule over Korea. As a result of Japan's efforts to supplant the Korean language and aspects of Korean culture, memories of Japanese annexation still recall fierce animosity and resentment, especially among older Koreans. Nevertheless, import restrictions on Japanese movies, popular music, fashion, and the like have been lifted, and many Koreans, especially the younger generations, eagerly follow Japanese pop culture. Aspects of Korean culture, including television shows and movies, have also become popular in Japan.
Japan's surrender to the Allied Powers in 1945, signaling the end of World War II, only further embroiled Korea in foreign rivalries. Division at the 38th parallel marked the beginning of Soviet and U.S. trusteeship over the North and South, respectively. On August 15, 1948 the Republic of Korea (R.O.K.) was established, with Syngman Rhee as the first President. On September 9, 1948 the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (D.P.R.K.) was established under Kim Il Sung.
On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces invaded South Korea. Led by the U.S., a 16-member coalition undertook the first collective action under United Nations Command (UNC). Following China's entry on behalf of North Korea later that year, a stalemate ensued for the final two years of the conflict. Armistice negotiations, initiated in July 1951, were ultimately concluded on July 27, 1953 at Panmunjom, in what is now the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The Armistice Agreement was signed by representatives of the Korean People's Army, the Chinese People's Volunteers, and the U.S.-led UNC. Though the R.O.K. supported the UNC, it refused to sign the Armistice Agreement. A peace treaty has never been signed. The war left almost three million Koreans dead or wounded and millions of others homeless and separated from their families.
In the following decades, South Korea experienced political turmoil under autocratic leadership. President Syngman Rhee was forced to resign in April 1960 following a student-led uprising. The Second Republic under the leadership of Chang Myon ended after only one year, when Major General Park Chung-hee led a military coup. Park's rule, which resulted in tremendous economic growth and development but increasingly restricted political freedoms, ended with his assassination in 1979. Subsequently, a powerful group of military officers, led by Lieutenant General Chun Doo-hwan, declared martial law and took power.
Throughout the Park and Chun eras, South Korea developed a vocal civil society that led to strong protests against authoritarian rule. Composed primarily of students and labor union activists, protest movements reached a climax after Chun's 1979 coup and declaration of martial law. A confrontation in Gwangju in 1980 left at least 200 civilians dead. Thereafter, pro-democracy activities intensified even more, ultimately forcing political concessions by the government in 1987, including the restoration of direct presidential elections.
In 1987, Roh Tae-woo, a former general, was elected president, but additional democratic advances during his tenure resulted in the 1992 election of a long-time pro-democracy activist, Kim Young-sam. Kim became Korea's first civilian elected president in 32 years. The 1997 presidential election and peaceful transition of power marked another step forward in Korea's democratization when Kim Dae-jung, a life-long democracy and human rights activist, was elected from a major opposition party. The transition to an open, democratic system was further consolidated in 2002, when self-educated human rights lawyer, Roh Moo-hyun, won the presidential election on a "participatory government" platform. In December 2007, South Koreans elected Lee Myung-bak, a former business executive and Mayor of Seoul, as president.
11:01 am on September 26th, 2010 16
Thanks for the long run down of the long Korean history. Koreans still speak Korean and there's a nation called Korea, not part of China or Japan or Russia, but part of Korea. So what is exactly is your point
——-
"“I see more and more in Asia a recognition that the United States is going to be a dominant, key player in Asia for at least the better part of the next 40 or 50 years,” Campbell said."
——-
Even if you want to be the dominant key player in Asia, I got news for you:
#1. you guys can't afford it.
#2. you guys can't afford to piss off the Chinese without getting cut off.
And all this means one thing – a declining American power in Asia who is increasingly afraid of upsetting China.
11:38 am on September 26th, 2010 17
Tom,
While I have seen no hint on the Internet of anything like this, another scenario could be…
Protectionist factions in America gain power due to an extended poor economy, misdirected nationalism, false flag incidents, etc.
Everyone realizes that China supplies many products but few are real necessities.
Laws are passed to limit Chinese imports… one possible explanation as to why the Western world is so interested in global environmental laws and regulations… wait for a "we don't do business with globally irresponsible companies" law.
American industry starts up again to fill the need… at a higher price to the consumer but with more people working… even if many of them are former illegal aliens given amnesty… sold with the public promise to reduce the trade deficit and "make America strong again". A side effect is a tighter North America.
A step further… to enforce global environmental treaties, Western powers blockade China's energy supplies from the Middle East… crippling their economy and aspirations of global power under the guise of saving the global environment.
Anyone have an ideas to add (or subtract)?
4:19 pm on September 26th, 2010 18
Tom
Korea has nothing another country needs or apparently wants. The place has very little if any natural resources, is nothing more than a penninsula bordering a nation of little interest, and was difficult at best to administer 100 years ago.
Koreans don't speak Japanese BECAUSE OF THE USA. You are likely a young angry Korean who learned very little of your recent of your own countries history. Or you slept through the part of history where the Japanese invaded Korea raped all your women, young girls, and children they wanted and chopped off the heads of those who objected to their rule, forcing everyone to watch. JAPANESE TEACHERS TAUGHT YOUR GRANDPARENTS MOTHERS AND FATHERS AND THEIRS, AND THEIRS, AND THEIRS. The only reason they did this was to increase the land mass of Japan, the same they did 400 years before (they left then because there was nothing for them).
"Japanese rule formally ended on 2 September 1945 upon the Japanese defeat in World War II that year." Likely you were not taught that in 1945, JAPAN SURRENDERED TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
The only thing keeping China from steamrolling Asia is the USA and Russia. The whole world knows it especially China. Taiwan maintains its own flag right?
10:17 am on September 27th, 2010 19
Lemmy, you hurt the child with facts.
2:44 pm on December 27th, 2010 20
Well, my read is that they assessed this as one of those issues that should be fought out by "battalions". They did not expect the Chinese to lose all sense of proportionality and throw in a "division" like the rare Earth crap. When that happens, one is forced to tactically retreat. The strategic price that the Chinese paid for this tactical victory is a loss of reputation and a wake-up call to the rest of the world about their rare-Earth vulnerability, which can be mitigated with relative ease.
China should have saved it for something REALLY important.