Dispute
My
name
Rory
Copeland and I am
Head Chair of the Security
Council.
is
the
1534 China and Taiwan (then the same country) claim to have
discovered the Islands, and begin to refer to them as home
territory.
1895 The Treaty of Shimonoseki transfers ownership of the
island of Taiwan and the surrounding islands to Japan, following
Japans victory over China in the Sino-Japanese War. Japan now
claims that the Senkaku Islands formed part of this transfer.
1945 Japan is defeated by USA and China in World War II. USA
becomes the administrator of the Islands.
1969 The United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and
the Far East (ECAFE) identifies potential oil and gas reserves in
the vicinity of the Senkaku Islands.
1971 The Peoples Republic of China (China) replaces the
Republic of China (Taiwan) as the official representative of
China in the UN Security Council.
1972 USA gives control of the Islands to Japan. China and
Taiwan formally dispute the sovereignty of the Islands.
1972 Present Several rounds of bilateral talks considering
the joint development of sub-seabed resources around the
Island take place, but none succeed.
Current Situation
A Further Point
The Republic of China, Taiwan, is not a member state of the
United Nations, and many countries around the world do not
recognise it as being a country, but it claims ownership of the
Islands. If it is a country, it should be admitted to the United
Nations, and may stake a claim to these Islands. Its right to
Statehood rests on differing interpretations of the Montevideo
Convention, and its UN membership application is not an issue
that we will have time to consider in our debate. It is up to