nd therefore, by extension, whether the US deterrent still exists. In November, China established an air defence identification zone over parts of the East China Sea. In particular, the zone covered the Japanese- controlled Senkaku islands, which China also claims. Japan was incensed and, in response, the US sent

rbon reserves has pushed it into conflict with other countries with offshore claims in the South China Sea and into a similar dispute with Japan in the East China Sea. Energy- related disputes of this sort can also be found in the Caspian Sea and in globally warming, increasingly ice-free Arctic regions. The seed

into a larger regional conflict. If it were only a matter of distance, the solution to a dispute over a small group of hotly contested islands in the East China Sea would be simple. Taiwan, which is just 200 kilometers (125 miles) away from the islands, would take the prize. The Chinese mainland is farther off,

ch in Delhi, notes that ties with Japan, for instance, have become much closer in the past two years because of tensions between Japan and China in the East China Sea. The dragon in the room India's direct concern with China is its disputed 3,380km-long Himalayan border. This week brought apparent progress in ma

ea; is particularly vulnerable to flooding as groundwater extractions and sea-level rise hasten the sinking of its massive high rise buildings into the East China Sea. Parts of the city have sunk three metres. In response, the authorities have begun pumping 60,00o tonnes of water a year back into wells to reduce

e world focuses on Ukraine, ships and planes from Japan and China challenge each other almost every day near a few square miles of barren islets in the East China Sea that Japan calls the Senkaku and China calls the Diaoyu islands. This dangerous rivalry dates to the late 19th century, but the flare-up that led t