hankyoreh

South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun proposed changing the name of the waters between South Korea and Japan to "Sea of Peace" or "Sea of Friendship" during his summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Vietnam last November, Roh's office Cheong Wa Dae said Monday.

"It is true that Roh suggested South Korea and Japan give up their respective names for the disputed waters and find a new mutually satisfactory name during his latest summit with Abe," said a Cheong Wa Dae official, confirming a vernacular newspaper's report.

"Roh then informally proposed calling the waters 'Sea of Peace' or 'Sea of Friendship.' But further discussions did not take place as Japan has failed to show any response thus far," the official said, asking to remain anonymous.

The naming of the waters between South Korea and Japan, called "East Sea" by Seoul and "Sea of Japan" by Tokyo, has been one of the most hotly disputed diplomatic issues between the two countries.

The naming dispute dates back to the earlier half of the last century when Japan colonized the Korean Peninsula for 35 years until the end of World War II. Korean historians say the body of water's original name was the East Sea, but that the term Sea of Japan became widely adopted starting in the 19th century.

The president's alleged indication of an intention to give up the name East Sea is expected to trigger a controversy among Koreans.

"President Roh made the informal proposal on renaming the East Sea as he saw the need to resolve pending diplomatic disputes between South Korea and Japan from a broader perspective. He just metaphorically mentioned the terms 'sea of peace' or 'sea of friendship' as its new name," said the official.

"As Japan has not shown any response, however, the (Korean) government has no intention to proceed further on the renaming issue."
Seoul, Jan. 8 (Yonhap News)