The Japanese government's "purchase and nationalization" of the Diaoyu Islands have close links with nationalist Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara, who has already used the Japanese media to publicize his fanaticism and raise funds for his bloody cause.

The Japanese government has long been plotting, indirectly though the move to take control of the Diaoyu Islands and Japanese politicians were waiting "patiently" to see how the Chinese mainland and Taiwan, and the United States would react.

But no tricks played by the Japanese government can alter the truth that the islands are part of China's territory. Japan's unilateral move to take control of the Diaoyu Islands is illegal and cannot serve as evidence for their sovereignty.

Although the Diaoyu Islands are now under Japanese control, they are an integral part of China's territory, which is fully supported by historical records and international law. A map prepared in 1785 by Hayashi Shihei, a Japanese military scholar, also marked the islands pink, the same color that he ascribed to Chinese provinces.

On Oct 9, 1885, Yamagata Aritomo, then Japanese interior minister, turned down the request to incorporate the Diaoyu Islands into Japanese territory by manufacturing Japanese marks, because the islands and their affiliated islets already had Chinese names.

After the end of World War II, Japan surrendered unconditionally to the allied forces and accepted the Potsdam Proclamation that determined that all territories, including the Diaoyu Islands, occupied by Japan during its invasion of China be returned to China. As the Potsdam Proclamation is an international treaty, it is arbitrary and illegal for Japan and the US to claim that the islands fall within the scope of the US-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security.

Based on the facts mentioned above, it is critical to point out that peaceful negotiation is the only way to find out a possible solution to the dispute between China and Japan because neither side can afford to take the risk of a military conflict given the advanced weapons they possess. China and Japan have no choice but to revert to the agreement of "joint exploration" of the Diaoyu Islands.

I wrote an article, "The Diaoyu Islands are not Japanese Territory", in Central Daily News on Oct 24-25, 1990. After the article was published, Lee Teng-hui, then Taiwan leader, ordered his office director to ask me if I could write another article on the same subject based on international law.

I was worried that I was not a professional writer and would not be able to execute the job. But coincidentally, Ma Ying-jeou, then deputy head of the Mainland Affairs Council, gave me a research work in English that contained a discourse on the Diaoyu Islands. I called back Lee's office, suggesting the article better be authored by Ma. But I got no further response from Lee's office.

After all these years, Lee Teng-hui has turned around to say that "the islands are Japanese territory". It's really weird. And only Lee can explain why he has changed his stance.

But now I am determined to pen the details on the history of the Diaoyu Islands so that people know the truth.

Chen Peng-jen, a professor at Chinese Culture University in Taipei and former chairman of party history committee of Kuomintang central committee.

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(China Daily 09/27/2012 page9)