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Revision as of 18:52, 6 January 2008 by El C (talk | contribs) (at least some indication of ongoing protection (I actually favour this, less obtrusive tag))(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) "Dokdo" redirects here. For the former currency of Kutch, see Kutch kori. "Takeshima" redirects here. For other uses, see Takeshima (disambiguation).
The Liancourt Rocks are a group of small islets in the Sea of Japan (East Sea). They are situated at 37°14′30″N 131°52′W / 37.24167°N 131.867°W / 37.24167; -131.867Invalid arguments have been passed to the {{#coordinates:}} function. Sovereignty over the islands is disputed between Japan and South Korea. Korea has controlled them since after the Second World War.
The islets are known as Dokdo or Tokto (독도/獨島, literally solitary island) in Korean and as Takeshima (竹島) (literally Bamboo island) in Japanese. The English name Liancourt Rocks derives from the name of a French whaling ship whose crew discovered and charted the islets in 1849.
The Liancourt Rocks comprise two main islets and 35 smaller rocks. Their total surface is 187,450 square meters and their highest elevation is 169 meters. They are currently uninhabited except for a small Korean police detachment, administrative personnel and lighthouse staff.
Korea administers the islands as part of its Ulleung County, North Gyeongsang Province. Japan classifies them as part of its Okinoshima, Oki District, Shimane Prefecture.
International dispute
There are conflicting interpretations about the state of sovereignty over the islands in pre-modern times. A Korean claim is partly based on references to a Korean islands called Usan-do in various historical records and maps. According to the Korean view, these refer to today's Liancourt Rocks, while the Japanese side argues that they must refer to a different island, today called Jukdo, a small islet located in the immediate vicinity of the nearest larger Korean island Ulleung-do.
Japan officially incorporated the islands as part of its territory in 1905, shortly before it occupied Korea itself as a protectorate.
The present-day conflict largely stems from conflicting interpretations of whether Japan's renunciation of sovereignty over its occupied territories after the Second World War was supposed to cover the Liancourt Rocks too. A decision by the Supreme Command of the Allied occupation powers (SCAP), Instruction #677 of January 29, 1946, listed the Liancourt Rocks as part of those territories over which Japanese sovereignty was to be suspended, but the final peace treaty between Japan and the Allied powers, the Treaty of San Francisco, did not mention them.
References
- Charles Scanlon "South Koreans vent fury at Japan" BBC Online, 18 March 2005
- "Liancourt Rocks / Takeshima / Dokdo / Tokto", Globalsecurity
- Korea.net (1999–2006). Dokdo: A Profile. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
- Korea.net (1999–2006). Dokdo: Inhabitants and Visitors. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.