. >> translator: any unilateral action to undermine the administration of this senkaku islands will be denied by the united states. we agree on this point. stop the hostile rhetoric and stop provoking china. >> in our discussions i emphasized the importance of resolving this issue peacefully, not escalating the situation. keeping rhetoric low, not taking provocative actions. >> here in japan, president barack obama cannot escape the crisis in ukraine. he was asked how he would respond to violence by russian backed militia in eastern ukraine. mr. obama said he's ready to impose fresh sanctions on russia in days. he accused vladimir putin for not sticking to spirit or letter

watched chinese leaders send ship after ship to the east china sea to back up their claim to the senkaku islands controlled by japan. the japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of japan's territory in terms of history and international law. the chinese military is expanding its reach in the south china sea, too. abe referred to the current state of things earlier this year. >> we must restrain military expansion in asia, which could otherwise go unchecked. >> reporter: then there's north korea. authorities in pyongyang are pushing ahead with their nuclear and missile development. they've threatened to carry out another underground nuclear test. prime minister abe will use the meeting with obama to confirm his country will continue to benefit from the protection afforded by the japan/u.s. security treaty. leaders in washington hopes that the treaty will cover japan in the event of a clash with china over the senkaku islands. >> translator: i'd like to tell the world with president obama that we will not tolerate any attempt to use the threat of force to change the

japan controls the senkakus. china and taiwan claim them. the japanese government maintains the islands are an inherent part of japan's territory in terms of history and international law. prime minister abe has been seeking to reinterpret the constitution to allow japan to exercise the right to collective self-defense. the statement says that the united states supports japan's consideration of the matter. >>> japan's deputy prime minister taro aso has expressed doubts about an early conclusion about the japan/u.s. tpp negotiations. >> translator: i don't think the u.s. will be able to make a decision before the midterm elections in november. i don't believe president obama has the power to bring the country together now. >> aso added even if the ministers in charge of the tpp talks reach an agreement there's no guarantee that the u.s. congress will approve it. the top government spokesman commented on aso's remarks that the talks would take time. >> translator: i don't think finance minister aso was saying anything like that if we consider

abe appeared to get that using the japanese name for the islands senkaku. preident obama said america would defend them. >> they have been administered by japan, and we do not believe that they should be subject to change unilaterally. >> translator: any unilateral action to undermine the administration of this senkaku islands will be denied by the united states. we agree on this point. stop the hostile rhetoric and stop provoking china. >> in our discussions i emphasized the importance of resolving this issue peacefully, not escalating the situation. keeping rhetoric low, not taking provocative actions. >> here in japan, president barack obama cannot escape the crisis in ukraine. he was asked how he would respond to violence by russian backed militia in eastern ukraine. mr. obama said he's ready to impose fresh sanctions on russia in days. he accused vladimir putin for not sticking to spirit or letter of the agreement signed last week. bbc news tokyo. >> we'll keep you posted on the president's trip to the far east. let's move on with business. aaron is he

china and other nations claim ownership of the islands known as senkakus in japanese, and diaoyus in chinese. michael is a research associate at the mit center for international studies. >> china might choose not to retaliate in this instance. anything that in any way shows movement towards the senkakus, what they call the diaoyus, will lead to a response by the chinese side. even know what is happening is a - japan is building on its own territory, definitely its own territory, it's a listening post, not taking offensive action to china. anything to do with the senkakus, is problematic. >> now, food security is a big election issue in india. still to come - we'll report ensuring people, including the poorest don't go hungry. >> finding release from trauma. a building collapse in bangladesh killed 1,100 workers. >> and after the monte carlo masters, novak djokovic doesn't know when heel be back on court again. that's coming up after the break. well it's official... xfinity watchathon week was the biggest week in television history. but just when you thought it was over... what now? w

we don't take a position on final sovereignty determinations with respect to senkaku, but historicallyy have been administered by japan. and we do not believe that they should be subject of change unilaterally. >> president obama and president abe live in tokyo at the press conference following their summit. they have been discussing trade, security, as you just heard, and really, essentially, reaffirming their alliance between the two countries. more on this coming up on al jazeera america. i'll see you tomorrow night. "borderland" is next. >> two hours in, we came up on a body... >> this country is crazy man..you have problems with somebody...they him them. >> knowing this is the kind of violence that is so prevalent in the culture...are you telling me that's ok to just open up the borders and let em' all run into the united states? >> the good news is , is that you'll be cominge

so i think -- senkaku islands that japan claimed. but also china claims. so u.s. really needs to avoid any clash. u.s. really want to have more communication between japan and china. so i think the tpp -- china also realize they need their own economic growth with major partner, u.s. japan and the asia pacific. >> reporter: yeah. i suppose this is one way to get china to, i don't know, agree to open its markets or exchange rates. to be part of the tpp perhaps one day. i want to bring this a little bit more to the relationship between abe and president obama. are we going to hear an announcement that says japan is the strategic partner of america? and if so, more than china, does it matter? >> i think one major -- the big challenge for the both president obama and prime minister abe, i think of how strategic was. of course, clear lly both have declared alliance. how to cooperate in the asia pacific. i think now both governments agreed to review the guidelines for the u.s. transpacific corporation. that's one thing they really need to discuss about it. also one of t

president said the senkakus have been historically governed by japan.he diaoyu island, as it's called in china, has strained relations. president obama's remarks are likely to anger china. >> we stand together calling for disputes in the region, including maritime issues, to be resolved peacefully, through dialogue. we share commitment to fundamental principles such as freedom of navigation and respect to international law. the treaty commitment to japan's community is absolute, and article five covers all territories under japan's administration, including the si senkakku islands island. >> the u.s. and japan share sovereignty based on legal principles. we are global countries promoting stability and peace. both are contributing to the peace and prosperity of asia-pacific region. >> live to our correspondent mike viqueira in tokyo, travelling with the president. >> mike, what the japanese wanted is incontrovertible support from the united states. has president obama said enough for tokyo? >> i think so. there was was a long time coming. the japanese we

such responses have increased since japan nationalized the senkaku islands in the east china sea two years ago. china and taiwan claim the islands. japan's government maintains that the islands are an inherent part of japan easter toir and that there is no issue of territorial sovereignty to be resolved over the islands. the number of chinese early warning aircraft and bombers flying over international waters between miyako island and okinawa's main island has also increased since last summer. aircraft were scrambled against russian planes nearly 360 times last year, up about 110 from the previous year. >>> time now for a check of the weather. a cyclone is heading to northeastern australia. our meteorologist robert speta is here with an update. robert? >> yes. we are watching out here as now a very severe and potentially very dangerous or deadly storm system, if people do not take the proper precautions out ahead of this. this is cyclone ita. it's continues to track to the west. now a category 5 on the meteorology scale. this is the highest it goes. take a look at the visible satelli

the president was forthright in his support of the japanese as far as the senkaku islands. china's trying to get their hands on in the east china sea. he made it clear the united states is on japan's side on that one. of course, all of this territorial dispute is something that has something in common with what's going on, of course, in eastern europe and ukraine. it's on that front that the president made probably the most news of anything during his second day here in tokyo. and that was that he does not expect vladimir putin to abide by the geneva agreement. that new sanctions are teed up. he didn't say whether they would be sect orrial sanctions or targeted sanctions at certain people, certain rich folks, maybe specific companies in russia. but again, he didn't talk about what kind of sanctions, just simply said they're teed up, there's technical issues. obviously that's quote for getting the europeans onboard. the president made it clear, as he has for week when it comes to sanctions against russia, that they're not as effective if the united states does it alone, they

/japan security treaty covered the senkaku islands. japan administers the islands in the east china sea. china and taiwan claim them. in south korea, obama stressed ubty with president park geun-hye against north korea's provocations. the two leaders warned the nation's leaders could face tougher sanctions, if they conduct a fourth nuclear tst. they tell me that the tour has been successful in reinforcing america's unshakable ties with the asia-pacific region. but there were some shortcomings, too. u.s. and japanese leaders had hoped to reach a deal on the trans-pacific partnership free trade talks, during obama's visit. but hours of discussion turned to agreement. a joint statement released at the end of obama's visit only said some progress had been made. obama also left malaysia empty-handed on trade. prime minister razak said malaysia was far from being ready to sign any deal due to internal sensitivities. obama's visit resulted in some gains with its allies on security issues. but there is more work to be done for all parties conc

defense treaty with japan includes these disputed islands in the east china sea, the senkakus.s to give them back. the real source of tension in the east china sea. now the president has said, we'll go to war to defend japan if say this are attacked. so was that the right thing to do? >> absolutely it's the right thing to do and a welcomed sign from the president because the asian allies are very concerned at our commitment to defend them given what's happened in cry me a ya. they watch the news. china is a big problem in the region. they are doubling military spending and they seized islands off the philippines. and they have declared the south china sea a core interest. this is a major trading route. so the president -- this kind of strong rhetoric is very welcomed. >> what about the trade treaty with japan, mary, because that was something also the president wanted to take away, but that looks like it stalled. this is the transpacific talks with 12 specific nations, not including china but very much including japan. >> the transpacific partnership, if established, it will ma

bilateral ties have been strained since the japanese government nationalized some of the senkaku islands in the east china sea two years ago. japan controls the islands. china and taiwan claim them. >>> a chinese court has ordered the seizure of a cargo ship owned by a japanese shipping firm. court officials say the firm has failed to pay fees dating back nearly 80 years. the iron ore carriers is anchored at a port in eastern china. officials with shanghai maritime court announced on saturday that they have seized it. the ship's owners admit the osk line say they're trying to figure out what to do next. court officials said in 2007 that a predecessor to mitsui had been in arrears on leasing fees for two ships. that were used during the japan/china war. the conflict broke out in 1937. the court ordered the company to pay compensation of about $30 million. lawyers for mitsui launched an appeal, but in 2010, china's supreme people's court rejected it. >>> the managers of other japanese companies with assets in china wonder whether the seizure will have implications for them. former chinese

military would defend japan in a dispute with china over the senkaku islands. tomorrow, president obama heads to south korea, the second stop on his week-long, four-country asian tour. devin dwyer, abc news, tokyo. >>> the search for missing malaysia airlines flight 370 is now in its 48th day. that piece of metal found on an australian beach that generated a near fever pitch of excitement in the media yesterday, turned out to have absolutely no connection to the missing jumbo jet. and the american robotic submarine has now covered 90% of its search area. so far, though, it has found nothing. >>> and now, to south korea, where divers are working their way deeper into that submerged ferry, hoping to find more victims. nearly 160 are confirmed dead. and more than 140 are still missing. also this morning, investigators have raided the home and offices of that doomed ferry's owner and his relatives, in a move that could produce more arrests. so far, 11 of the 22 crew members who survived have been detained or arrested. >>> a sweeping, new gun rights law in georgia i

he was talking about the japanese not allowing china to take the senkaku islands.e president whether he was backing himself into a corner while he was at the guest statehouse in tokyo. >> how does that draw another red line that you would have to enforce? >> the treaty between the united states and japan preceded by birth. so obviously this is not a red line that i'm drawing. it is the standard interpretation over multiple administrations of the terms of the alliance. >> president obama has long held plans to pivot his foreign policy focus to malaysia and the old world preceps of europe. of course, no tour of asia is complete without the president fielding a penalty kick from a robot while in japan. some critics, such as dana milbank, is taking options of these critics. the photo-op contributes to a perception that obama's asian policy and his foreign policy in general is similarly itinerant. while the president is in asia for a whole week, this is what ukraine looks like now. a road block in flames. ukrainian forces killing five militants and clashes at pro-russia

senkakus. >> as far as japan goes, it was a move by obama to give reassurances that he was on their sideo far as the territorial dispute with china goes. >> vital to do that for japan. in private he has to get japan and south korea on track. they are not cooperating well, and the u.s. is trying to push them closer. the other reassurance that the united states has to give to both of them, it will support them getting together. >> how will they do that. tokyo and seoul are barely on speaking terms. the leaders met once, only after obama pushed them into a photo opportunity. how will he get the two allies talking to each other. nothing will complicate their minds. in private with japan, the u.s. publicly and in private talked to shinzo abe about the war issue. he didn't go to the shrine, last year he went. it's to try to get japan to be sensitive about the complaints as to the war. >> so far as the military preps, there has been protests in the fephilippines over the security accord. not everyone on board with that move, but that is crucial to the u.s. as being part of the counterbalance to

. >> you're talking about the japanese, the senkaku islands?'re trying to, with very provocative acts of sending their vessels into japanese waters and airspace. i'm referring to the scholl which they seized from the philippines and the united states did nothing. that really got our allies upset because they're wondering if we will defend them. >> the president's saying for the first time america's security agreement with japan covers these islands, the senkaku islands in the east china sea. will that message reverberate in beijing? >> it already has because the beijing diplomats have reacted very angrily to that. that was a very important thing for the president to do. what he said was also said by secretaries clinton, hagel and kerry, but the chinese needed to hear it from the president himself. so that i think was a very good start to a very important trip. >> as you know, the white house has long talked about a so-called pivot to asia. we have ukraine boiling over. syria, mired in civil war. iraq once again descending into bloodshed. can th

and engaging on subjects that matter to these diplomatic relationships like taking a stand in the senkaku islands. president obama came on far stronger than expected on that subject, affirming the united states is obligated under treaty to protect japan against china's encroachment and that, raladies and gents is substance. i'll start with you dayna, would you say the pivot to the east has failed at this point? >> no, i would say there hasn't been enough of it. i think it's terrific that he's there in asia doing this. but remember the pivot was first declared in 2011. and my complaint here is not an idealogical one. i think the policies are is a personal reasonable and good one if it is to pivot to asia, let's do that and have the emphasis there and keep it solidly there. i think the juxtaposition of the two events, you see the middle east peace talks falling apart today and shows we're going off in various directions without focusing enough to get one of them done like that trans pacific trade deal. >> you point out in the latest piece, this isn't the president's fault, about outside eve

the fierce fight over a group of islands saying, quote, policy of the united states is clear, the senkaku islands are administered by japan. it's pretty clear how china will respond at least rhetorically earlier this month, china's defense minister told chuck hagel, quote, we will make no compromise, no concession, the chinese military can assemble as soon as summoned, fight any battle and win. in another effort to counter balance china, the president is expected to announce an agreement with the philippines that would give american ships and planes the most extensive access to the bases there in the last two decades. the philippines voted to evict the u.s. military from its bases in 1991 after a century long military presence and activists are already protesting the new security pact ahead of the president's visit to manila. other questions on the agenda, account u.s. and japan resolve trade differences and hammer out a deal on the broader 12 nation transpacific partnership agreement. account president calm angst between japan and south korea. accou accou can the u.s. use the north co m

simply because of this confrontation between china and japan about the senkaku islands.ns backed off. it's not about the size of the military capability, which is immense, of course. it's the will of the americans. >> reporter: though with 27,000 u.s. marines based in japan, u.s. commanders say they have the will and the means. >> i landed on this beach 30 years ago as a young lieutenant. this shows our staying power. the strength of these alliances. >> reporter: and president obama may have a few questions of his own for prime minister abe. why, for example, did he go out of his way to provoke china with this visit to the yesakuni shrine? home to the spirits of japan's most notorious war criminals. mr. abe's reluctance to accept what japan did during world war ii is not only sabotaging relations with china and korea, but with his most important ally, too. rupert wing-field hayes, bbc news, tokyo. >>> the official u.s. briefing from the white house says very clearly this visit is about deepening economic ties. let's go to our chief business correspondent, linda yu there

conflicts all around the world, including in asia, where you could say that the chinese claim on the senkaku islands as opposed to japan could lead to the exact same kind of action. so people who just want it to go away who don't think it's that big of a deal and so on, i think they don't understand the full ramifications for years to come of the actions that putin has taken. >> how do you think the u.s. has managed that situation so far? what can we do? what should we do? >> i think that the reinforcement of the baltic patrols and putting more forces into the baltic states is important. i think figuring out how to forward deploy more nato forces into places like poland and the baltic states are important. but i think the real leverage is economic in terms of the russians and in terms of sending the message that these kinds of actions that putin has taken will ultimately weaken russia, not strengthen it. and there i think so far that the economic actions that have been taken have been very weak. the problem is, it's very difficult for the united states to impose economic another internationa

can cave on ukraine, maybe they'll cave on the senkaku islands in the east china sea, which japan is contesting with china. so if the u.s. looks weaker or less resolved in one part of the world, people in another part of the world in this case asia, begin to doubt our resolve. we're back to the same narrative of the asians doubting our resolve. >> what is china's perspective on russia's ukrainian adventure? do you they think it makes us nervous or perhaps does it make them a little more hopeful given their problems with their neighbors or a little of both? >> the chinese are trying to play the russians. they're going to be a bigger customer for the natural gas. they're flooding the central asian states with cash with building pipelines. they're real competitors with the russians, but they're also watching to see how the u.s. behaves in ukraine because china has tended to see the asian pivot, obama's pivot, as really polite words for containing china. with japan, south korea, malaise yashg and the philippines all have in common, these are all the destinations of the president's trip t

. >> that's what they were talking about right there, the senkaku islands, which incidentally, brian,ot to go. >> it's like three rocks and a pebble. >> exactly. >> hillary clinton might need a vacation if this continues to haunt her. her rep was actually asked by an ap reporter, jen psaki, if she could name her accomplishments in the state department. and they couldn't come up with anything. take a listen. >> can you, off the top of your head, identify one tangible achievement that resulted from the last appointment? >> i was only here in the last part, so i'm sure there was a range of things that were put into place. >> i won't hold my breath. >> jen psaki actually came back, right? she had a do-over moment after she was posed the question. she came back and said, about yesterday, we're going to do this again. >> a stronger emphasis was placed on trade promotion investment and leveling the economic playing field, a fuller integration of women and girls into our policy framework. >> well, after the first moment of silence with crickets, she gave a try there, but will that make it bet

article 5 covers all territories under japan's administration, including the senkaku islands. >> obama is the first u.s. president to spell this out. beijing was quick to hit back. china's foreign ministry warned the united states to not take sides and respect the facts regarding the dispute. >>> elsewhere in the region, sony is venturing into new territory according to the nikkei. the electronicsmaker is planning to try its hand in real estate starting this august. let's get more on this story, joining us now we have a reporter from the nikkei, live from tokyo. >> reporter: named sony real estate, the newly established firm is 100% subsidiary of sony. the nikkei learned the firm will be fully equipped to meet the requests of individuals who want to sell or buy property. the goal is to reach $500 million in annual sales in five years. the project is a part of sony's initiative to create new businesses that established a unit in charge of coming up with ideas and will aim to launch more than ten projects within three years. another venture under discussion is the toy industry. now, sony

particularly around a set of islands, the senkaku islands.f you look at what's happened in ukraine, it seems as though the u.s. has no credibility about enforcing its dominance in the region. are asian allies going to feel this is the same case, if china wants to act like russia in asia, the u.s. will not be standing ready to back it up. >> well, this is clearly not a case for a strongmanship, that would be very much doubted and president will almost certainly not go down this route. china, on the other hand has been taking on basically all its allies in asia. it's not just japan, it's the south china sea with the most important economic interest. this is the philippines, vietnam. the major economies in asia. there is a strong basis for economic cooperation and the u.s. could be the partner, getting all the diverse economies, the diverse interest going and wrap them up in one strategy. basically a partnership agreement that gets almost anybody on board outside china. >> correct. thanks for joining us today, senior economist at fujitsu researc

is anything you can say about a hypothetical, if we wake up ing one ofomorrow tak the uninhabited senkaku islands, what do we do? little the question a bit more fair to you as a member of congress, to we have to have a military response? whoe was a marine general said if china does that we have to take them off. i am wondering if that is the automatic answer or if there are a range of answers, some could be quarantines or sanctions or other, nondirect but firm and resolute responses? do you have a view on that? >> my strongly held view is that clear that we will stand by our allies according to the treaties that we have with them. whether we are talking japan or south korea or whoever. countries around the world need to know that the united states is a reliable friend. a newspaper article this morning, it taught about the military preparing options for a range of possibilities. that is what we expect a military to do. to give policymakers those options. until we know the situation and so forth, i do not think we can say what option is the appropriate one for that situation. i do worry a l