(LinkAsia: 4/27/12) Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara took everyone by surprise this past week with his announcement that Tokyo will attempt to purchase a long-disputed island chain. Our Tokyo correspondent Toshi Maeda explains why the Senkaku isles (Diaoyu islands to China) are so important to both countries. IMAGE: Uotsuri island, part of the disputed islands in the East China Sea, known as the Senkaku isles in Japan, Diaoyu islands in China, is seen in the East China Sea: REUTERS/KYODO