The Senkaku Islands are a group of rocky, deserted islets in the East China Sea that are known as a home for albatrosses.
But when it comes to politics, the islands are anything but tranquil, being the center of a dispute involving Japan, China and Taiwan, which all claim them as their own.
Called Diaoyu in China and Tiaoyutai in Taiwan, the islands measure some 7 sq. km in total.
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