territorial dispute

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Japan to Spend $107M on Tiny, Remote Island

The move could spark territory dispute with China

(Newser) - A tiny island in the Pacific Ocean about 1,000 miles south of Tokyo is about to get a pricey makeover courtesy of Japan. It's all about allowing Japan to stake its claim to oil, rare metals, and lucrative fishing in the area around Okinotorishima, reports the Guardian . Japan...

US-Canada Dispute Over 2 Islands Could Get Violent

Lobstermen feud over disputed, and lucrative, territory

(Newser) - This might be news to Americans who don't make their living catching lobsters, but the US and Canada have been arguing for decades now over who owns two islands in the Atlantic between Maine and New Brunswick. They're called Machias Seal and North Rock, and the islands themselves...

China: Vietnam Rammed Our Ships 1.4K Times

Dispute over islands cites 1974 textbook

(Newser) - The dispute between China and Vietnam , fueled by the contentious location of a Chinese oil rig, is heating up: Now China is accusing Vietnamese ships of ramming its vessels well over a thousand times during the last month, the BBC reports. "As of 5pm on 7 June, there were...

How Dare We Rail on Russia for Foreign Intervention?

Eugene Robinson on the United States' shaky moral high-ground

(Newser) - Russia is way out of line. How dare a large military power cook up a pretext to invade a smaller, weaker nation? "Is it just me, or does the rhetoric about the crisis in Ukraine sound as if all of Washington is suffering from amnesia?" asks Eugene Robinson at...

At Issue in East Asia Dispute: Underwater Rock

Socotra is under Chinese, South Korean air-defense zones

(Newser) - As China, Japan, and South Korea feud over sea and sky, what's underwater is also a matter of contention. Both China and South Korea lay claim to a submerged rock between the countries—one that's the subject of Korean legend. In English, it's called Socotra Rock. Koreans...

Nicaragua Threatens to Reclaim 20% of Costa Rica

Daniel Ortega wants to go to International Court of Justice

(Newser) - Nicaragua's president warned once again yesterday that his country might seek to reclaim 20% of neighboring Costa Rica, AFP reports. "Costa Rica did not win that territory in an international court, but rather by force, with arms," said Daniel Ortega at a military ceremony. He was referring...

China, Japan Trade Barbs in Island Fight

China denies using radar-lock on Japanese destroyer

(Newser) - China is denying that one of its naval vessels put a radar lock on a Japanese warship in waters close to the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands. Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had claimed on Wednesday that a Chinese frigate used its radar to gather information on the Japanese destroyer last week—...

Obama Attends East Asia Summit Amid Sea Feud

China at center of multiple territorial disputes

(Newser) - President Obama is in Cambodia today, meeting with East Asian leaders amid a contentious territorial dispute over the South China Sea . Speaking publicly, neither Obama nor Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao responded to reporters' shouted questions about the tensions, the BBC reports. Instead, Obama referred to a "cooperative and constructive...

Japan, Taiwan Blast Water Cannons in Islands Feud

China launches aircraft carrier as countries hold talks

(Newser) - With tensions rising in a territorial dispute, Taiwan has sent dozens of boats to the islands in question, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. In the first Taiwanese foray into the area, the boats exchanged fire with Japanese water cannons, the AP reports. Japan, which recently bought...

China, Japan Trade Stunts Over Disputed Islands

With big gas fields under islets, neither country backing down

(Newser) - Chinese and Japanese activists are causing headaches in both countries over some islands in the East China Sea controlled by Japan, but claimed by both countries, reports the BBC . Called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China (and in Taiwan, which also claims them), the uninhabited islands made the news...

Philippines Facing Down China Warships

Both countries vow diplomatic response, but tensions high

(Newser) - A warship from the Philippines and two Chinese surveillance vessels are squaring off in the latest territorial dispute in the South China Sea, reports the Wall Street Journal . The confrontation began when a Philippine surveillance plane spotted eight Chinese fishing boats anchored in a lagoon in the Scarborough Shoal over...

Google Maps Mistake Triggers Invasion

Nicaragua uses border goof to justify incursion into Costa Rica

(Newser) - Google officials have apologized and promised to fix a flaw in a map that exacerbated a territorial dispute and triggered a Central American invasion. "We determined that there was indeed an error," said a statement from Google after a Nicaraguan commander used the flawed map as justification for...

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