Rising Tensions In East Asia

Tensions continue to rise in East Asia. Japan and China spar over the Senkaku/Diaoyu issue. Korea and Japan still mull historical issues and North Korea continues to be unpredictable. The Philippines and China are in a dispute over territorial waters. And Taiwan buys more arms from the U.S. while experiencing domestic unrest. At a global security conference on Feb. 2, 2014, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said that East Asia is like 19th century Europe. He said  “Between Japan and China, the issue for the rest of us is that neither side be tempted to rely on force to settle the issue.” The Wall Street Journal reported that a top U.S. official, Admiral Harry B. Harris Jr. told a naval conference in Australia on April 9, that “There’s both growing uncertainty in the region and increasing tensions–a witches’ brew, if you will, for miscalculation,” So what will happen? Will miscalculations lead to more than a war of words? Can we expect a genuinely “hot” incident this year? Give us your thoughts on this matter.