For China and Japan this has been an exceptionally difficult year in an always troubled relationship. Among their many disagreements, which in April triggered the biggest anti-Japanese protests in communist China's history, is a long-simmering territorial dispute in the East China Sea that lately has taken a turn for the worse. With Japanese officials and politicians accusing China of deploying "gunboats", nationalist sentiment on both sides is complicating efforts for a resolution. Two days of talks in Tokyo ended on October 1st with no agreement on the dispute, which focuses on the exploitation of undersea oil and gas deposits straddling what Japan says is the border line between the two countries' exclusive economic zones (EEZS). China does not recognise the border line and says that in any case its drilling is in an undisputed area. Japan says China's activities could suck gas from its side of the line.
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