ABSTRACT
Much of the scholarly literature in international relations on the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands dispute explains the conflict and proposes solutions in terms of material interests. We argue that analysis and solutions to the dispute must reckon not only with the material interests at stake, but also with the broader concerns about ontological security at play in regional and domestic politics, and the politics of victimization through which these concerns are expressed. Without understanding these forces, an important level of the conflict will remain invisible, frustrating efforts to defuse it. Accordingly, we should set aside immediate efforts for a permanent political and legal settlement and approach the dispute indirectly. Through challenging the self-serving instrumentalization of history for political purposes that sustains victimhood narratives in the region, and promoting instead forms of diplomatic practice that signal mutual recognition and respect, policymakers and societal actors can undercut crucial sources of tension in the region.
