Conflicts can lead to distruction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Conflicts can lead to distruction - Essay Example As per the assumptions and predictions among political observers, China may replace America from the superpower post in near future itself. It should be noted that communism is prevailing in China whereas Japan is a democratic country. Naturally, America’s policies are more aligned more in favour of Japan rather than China. â€Å"Its approach seems to have been "planned by bookworms and entrepreneurs, rather than politicians† (Jingsheng). America knows that a war between Japan and China would slow down the progress of China considerably and hence they are not doing anything to ease the tensions between these countries. This paper analyses the China and Japan confrontation over the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands through the lenses of Classical Realism and Neorealism. Key facts Japan annexed the islands in 1895 China started showing interest in them only in the early 1970sNo one has lived in any of these two islands after WW2 These two islands are very small in size The islands, known as the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China China’s interest in the islands rose in the late 1960s, when scientists began saying the nearby seafloor could hold oil deposits (Fackler) The current tensions began earlier this year when the nationalist governor of Tokyo announced his desire to buy three of the islands from their owner, a Japanese citizen (Territorial dispute involving Japan) Predictions of Realist theory and Neorealist theory Realism explains the relationships between nations in terms of power. In realist theories power is defined as capabilities that can create influence. Military force is perceived as the most important element of power by realists. States with higher power always use its power for getting leverages in a bargaining process. However, strategies and other parameters also have the ability to influence the outcome of a negotiation or barging process (Chapter Summary). Realist theories believe that self-interest is the primary objective which drives international politics. It argues that international systems are highly anarchic, a concept which believes that there is no universal sovereign government which can resolve international disputes. Neorealist theories argue that states by their nature are security seeking. In other words, security and survival are the primary objectives of each state. Another concept of neorealist theory is that states seek only relative security in comparison to other states (Bordner, p.1). Neorealism argues that there are only three possible systems in international politics; a unipolar system, bipolar system and multipolar system. In their opinion, bipolar system is more stable than multipolar system because of the greater balancing act it can provide. Neorealism believes that war is inevitable and permanent peace is only a distant dream because of the anarchic structure of current international system. Classical Realist explanation of the China-Japan island confrontation   â€Å"The val ue of the islands has never been in their aesthetics, but in history and geopolitics: what control of the islands says about the relative power of Asia’s two economic giants, one rising and the other in what many see as a slow decline†(Fackler). China is one of the rapidly emerging economies in the world at present. Many people believe that China may expel America from the superpower spot in near future itself. In fact no other country in the world at present is capable of matching the economic growth of China. In fact the recent