Yoshinari Kurose Yomiuri, Shimbun Correspondent
WASHINGTON--The U.S. Board of Geographic Names reversed its change of the sovereign status of the disputed Takeshima islets from "nondesignated sovereignty" to "South Korea" on its Web site in response to strong opposition from Seoul, a White House Asia adviser said Wednesday.
Dennis Wilder, the U.S. National Security Council's senior director for Asian affairs, said President George W. Bush instructed Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to reconsider the earlier nondesignated sovereignty determination.
The United States has concluded there was no appropriate reason at this time to change the listing of the islets from "South Korea" to "nondesignated sovereignty," prompting the latest change.
According to news reports from South Korea, South Korean Ambassador to the United States Lee Tae Sik directly asked Bush on Tuesday to reverse the board's designation change.
The South Korean government indicated it would bring up the issue during a summit meeting between South Korean President Lee Myung Bak and Bush, scheduled to be held in Seoul on Wednesday.
When it was discovered the U.S. board had changed the islets' listing from "South Korea" to "nondesignated sovereignty" on its Web site, South Korea carried out a military training exercise in the sea around the islets Wednesday to express its opposition to the change.
The earlier change was expected to prompt South Koreans to stage large rallies during Bush's visit.
Bush is believed to have made the move to calm Seoul's reaction by respecting its intentions ahead of his South Korean tour. He also realizes a good relationship between the United States and South Korea is indispensable in dealing with the North Korean nuclear development issue.
Wilder said Washington did not take either the Japanese or South Korean side over sovereignty disputes, adding the United States believes the two countries should make diplomatic efforts to resolve the issue.
Both Japan and South Korea are U.S. allies in East Asia.
===
Machimura: We won't overreact
The Yomiuri Shimbun
Tokyo has taken a calm approach to the redesignation. Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura said in a press conference Thursday m orning: "We shouldn't overreact to what one U.S. government organization does. W e don't consider the redesignation of the islets' status on the board's Web s ite to represent a change of stance by Washington [over the territorial d ispute]." Machimura denied any plans by Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda to ask for Bush to c hange the listing again.
===
Seoul welcomes redesignation
Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent
SEOUL--South Korean President Lee Myung Bak's spokesman Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday released a written comment welcoming the reversing of the designation of the disputed Takeshima islets -- known as Dokdo in South Korea -- on the U.S. Board of Geographic Names Web site. The statement said: "[The change is] the result of restored Korea-U.S. alliance and trust between the two nations. The unexpectedly swift action can be attributed in particular to President George W. Bush's understanding of the sentiment of the Korean people and the profound trust and friendship between the presidents of the two nations."
(Aug. 1, 2008)
Posts
