Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato announced at a press conference Thursday (Oct. 15) that Japan is considering conducting further studies of the natural environment using satellite images of the waters and islands of the Senkaku Islands (known in China as the Diaoyu Islands).
Katsunobu Kato said that the Ministry of the Environment of Japan plans to conduct a study of the natural environment of the Senkaku Islands using the latest satellite technology as soon as the end of this year, as part of a nationwide study by the Ministry to understand the natural environment.
Japan and China have had a long-standing territorial dispute over the Senkaku Islands, which China calls the Diaoyu Islands.
Katsunobu Kato said at the meeting, “We will use the latest satellite images to update vegetation maps produced in the past and investigate the survival of rare wildlife on the island.”
A Japanese government official told Reuters that the study would not involve anyone involved in the Senkaku Islands.
On the same day that Katsunobu Kato announced the plan, the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) and other Japanese media reported that the Japan Coast Guard had spotted two more Chinese Coast Guard vessels entering the waters of the Senkaku Islands on the morning of the 15th and attempting to approach Japanese fishing boats. It is reported that this is the 22nd time this year that Chinese Coast Guard vessels have sailed into the waters.
Kato said that Japan has protested to China through diplomatic channels.
Since September 16, when Kato became the Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan, he has publicly confronted the Chinese side several times over the territorial dispute over the Senkaku Islands.
Recently, the Chinese government opened a special website “China Diaoyu Islands Digital Museum”, which the Japanese government protested to China through diplomatic channels and asked the Chinese side to cancel it.
Kato Katsunobu said at a press conference on May 5 that China is not qualified to set up a website for the Senkaku Islands. He said, “The Senkaku Islands are part of the inherent territory of Japan, which is recognized both historically and in international law. We maintain this effective control over these islands.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying responded at a press conference on March 9 that the Diaoyu Islands and their dependencies are China’s inherent territory, which is based on sufficient historical and legal grounds. The Chinese side opened the Diaoyu Islands Digital Museum on the basis of its sovereignty position, and the Japanese side has no right to make any criticism. The Japanese side attempts to provoke China’s territorial sovereignty through the so-called “name change”, which is illegal and invalid, and cannot change the fact that the Diaoyu Islands belong to China.
The Ishigaki City Council of Okinawa Prefecture voted on June 22 this year to change the name of the administrative region of Japan where the Senkaku Islands are located from “Tono Castle” to “Tono Castle Senkaku”.
In addition, since the beginning of July this year, Chinese coast guard vessels have been sailing frequently into the waters of the Senkaku Islands and attempting to approach Japanese fishing boats, and the Japanese side has made several serious representations to China.
Zhao Lijian, another spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, stressed on March 12 that the Diaoyu Islands and their dependencies are China’s inherent territory, and that it is China’s inherent right to carry out law enforcement patrols in the waters of the islands, which should be effectively respected by the Japanese side.
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