The row between Japan and China over the Senkaku Islands is, on the surface, a territorial issue. The root of the rift, however, is much deeper and wider.
In the Japanese view, the incident that developed into a serious political issue between the two countries originated in the violent action of a Chinese fishing boat that not only violated the territorial waters of Japan but ignored warnings and, furthermore, struck a Japan Coast Guard ship.
While the Japanese side has tried to deal with the matter within a legal framework, the Chinese side seems to regard the incident not as a matter of legal procedures but as a political provocation on the Japanese side.
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