This partly explains the current tensions between China and Japan over their conflicting territorial claims to islands in the East China Sea, which occupy an area of only seven square kilometers, but are surrounded by rich hydrocarbon reserves. Disputes in the South China Sea involving China and five of its neighbors, and in southern Asia, are equally resource-driven.
这一定程度上可以解释中日之间目前因领土要求而导致的局势紧张，东海的海上小岛占地仅7平方公里，但周围却环绕着丰富的油气储量。南海争端涉及中国及五个邻国，而南亚争端背后同样存在着资源驱动。