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Last week, Tokyo repeated its claims to Korea¡¯s Dokdo islets in the Japanese Defense Agency¡¯s 2007 white paper, saying the islets are ¡°part of Japanese territory.¡± Since the 2005 white paper, Tokyo has been claiming that territorial issues involving its northern territory and Dokdo ¡°remain unresolved.¡± To Korean government calls to delete such references, Tokyo has responded with only silence.
Since 2005, Japan has stepped up its ownership claim over Dokdo. Japan¡¯s Shimane Prefecture designated a special day to commemorate Dokdo, while the Japanese ambassador to Korea confidently declared in Seoul that Dokdo was part of Japanese territory. Japan¡¯s Education Ministry ordered the country¡¯s official civic education and geography texts to clearly state that Dokdo is Japanese territory and that Korea ¡°illegally occupied¡± it. In the spring of 2006, Japanese Coast Guard vessels even surveyed waters near Dokdo. The official who led those efforts was none other than Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was then the chief Cabinet secretary.
The true intentions of the Japanese government are as clear as daylight. Whenever it has the chance, Tokyo wants to claim ownership of Dokdo so it can draw global attention to the region and turn the area into disputed territory. The next phase of Japan¡¯s strategy is to take the issue to the International Court of Justice. Tokyo believes it can use its power to affect the decision of the ICJ. Japan is trying to pick a fight over the sovereign territory of another country, seeking to eventually take it over. If this was 100 years ago, Japan would undoubtedly have dispatched battleships to forcefully take over Dokdo while firing cannon at Incheon and Busan.
Japan¡¯s defense white paper contains the broad direction of the country¡¯s defense policy, and for Tokyo to use that document to make stubborn territorial claims over Dokdo can be viewed as a show of force. In 2005, Japanese military spending totaled $46.9 billion (US$1=W938), the world¡¯s second largest, while its actual military power is ranked third in the world. The Japanese Navy has 205 aircraft and 152 vessels, including four state-of-the-art Aegis ships, 54 destroyers and 16 submarines. Japan boasts one of the world¡¯s best anti-submarine, mine detection, logistics and other maritime combat abilities.
If the Japanese government continues such behavior, the Korean government and the Korean public will feel the ¡°historical misfortune¡± of living next to a neighbor like Japan increasingly keenly. Tokyo must realize this. It is a frightening prospect that a country like Japan is seeking permanent membership of the UN Security Council, hoping to play a greater role on the international scene.
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