Why did oil-reserve studies increase the importance of the Senkaku Islands dispute?

The dispute over the Senkaku Islands gained significant intensity following a 1969 United Nations report that highlighted the potential for substantial petroleum reserves in the surrounding seabed.12

Prior to these findings, the islands were primarily viewed as an uninhabited cluster in the East China Sea. However, the prospect of valuable natural resources transformed the area into a site of high strategic importance. Consequently, both China and Taiwan formally asserted their sovereignty claims in 1971, shortly after the report was published. This economic potential remains a core factor in the ongoing friction between the claimants, as control over the islands carries implications for the rights to exploit the resources within the adjacent maritime territory.12