For ten years, Kunioki Kurihara, a Japenese businessman, was collecting rent from the Japanese government for these three places, to the tune of about 25 million yen a year. Eventually, in September 2012, he sold the three (namely, Minamiko-jima, Utsori-jima, and Kitako-jima) to the government.
The sale has kicked off an incredible row, with a hate triangle involving Japan, China, and Taiwan. What's the fuss all about, and what are these places part of?
[+ Show Answer]
With this sale, Japan is in significant control of a group of islands in the East China Sea that they call Senkaku Islands and which the Japanese call Diaoyu Islands, and which you can just call Pinnacle Islands just to be safe. These three countries have had historical claims to them; despite being inhabited, the islands hold the promise of oil and are close to some important shipping routes.
More on the fuss here.