In the global subduction systems, the subduction input includes normal oceanic slabs and some
buoyant oceanic plateaus. Both of them will exert different geological effects on the subduction zone. Thus,
performing the study on the interaction of oceanic plateau and subduction zone will be significant for understand
the subduction zone geodynamics and the lateral accretion processes of continental crust. This study summarized
the geological and geophysical characteristics of some typical oceanic plateaus that are currently closing to a
subduction zone. These, combined with geological and geophysical features of adjacent subduction zones and
some recent numerical simulation data, have been used to discuss the geological effects of the interaction between
oceanic plateau and subduction zone. In the aspects of kinematics and geometry, buoyant oceanic plateaus can
generally resist subduction, lead to subduction retreatment and reversal of subduction polarity, and thereby form a
new subduction zone. The subduction process in some subduction zones will be terminated due to the arrival of
oceanic plateaus, and the plateaus finally accrete to the mature arc/crustal margins and become part of continental
crust. However, recent studies have shown that part of oceanic plateaus does not lead to the termination of the
subduction process, but rather contribute to the occurrence of flat subduction, thereby result in tectonic shortening
and thickening of the overlying plate in the subduction zone area, and the gradual migration of magmatic activity
toward intraplate setting. Geochemically, these oceanic plateaus with enriched compositions will not only affect
subduction zone lava geochemistry and the formation of hydrothermal deposits, but possibly contribute to the
formation of mantle heterogeneity. Finally, this study put forward some key scientific issues on the interaction of
oceanic plateaus with subduction zones, including the detailed crust/mantle structure of subduction zone, the
geological and geochemical response of the island arc and backarc basin to the new subduction tectonic
framework of “Oceanic plateau-Trench”, and quantitative correlations between the factors controlling whether
plateaus are accreted or subducted remain unclear.