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Korea has vowed to stop a plan by Japanese maritime authorities to dispatch a research vessel into Korea's exclusive economic zone near Dokdo for a hydrographical survey. Korea has not been informed of a move some say is a deliberate ploy to heighten tensions in the sensitive area.
The Foreign Ministry on Friday said Japanese maritime authorities notified the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) of their plans to conduct the survey in the East Sea from April 14 - June 30. The locations Japanese officials provided for their survey were to the East of Ulleung Island and the Dokdo islets at 37" 40' northern latitude and 131" 35' eastern longitude, 39" 30' northern latitude and 132" 37¡¯ eastern longitude, 38" 20' northern latitude and 136" 5' eastern longitude, and 36" 27' by 135" 0'.
The government has called in Japanese Ambassador Shotaro Oshima to register a strong protest. "Trespassing into our EEZ without permission is an act of unannounced incursion," Vice Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan was quoted as telling the envoy. "If Japan follows through with these plans, we will do everything in our power to stop you." The ambassador responded the area Tokyo intends to survey falls within Japan¡¯s EEZ. However, this would only be the case if the Dokdo islets were Japanese territory, in which case the line between Ulleung Island and Dokdo would mark the limit of both countries¡¯ EEZ.
The UN convention on the law of the sea stipulates that if a country wants to conduct marine research, it must have permission from neighboring countries. Under South Korean law, foreign countries planning to conduct research in South Korea¡¯s EEZ must have government approval. On both counts, Seoul decided Japan¡¯s action is illegal.
In an emergency meeting Friday, the government decided to take any legal measures necessary ¡© including detention, search and seizure -- if the research ship intrudes into South Korea¡¯s EEZ. Since that is very likely given Tokyo¡¯s notification of the IHO, the Korean government has beefed up patrols near Dokdo and in the East Sea.
The Japanese move is thought to be motivated by a plan to stoke tensions over Dokdo to amplify its claims to the islets into an international territorial dispute.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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