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A Need to Change Korean Policy toward Tokdo

From this brief study, it is clear that Tokdo has since 512 A.D. been an integral part of the Korean territory. It is an island appended to Ullungdo.

There are not any ancient documents published by the Japanese government that claim Tokdo as a Japanese territory. Therefore, the Japanese government has been advocating the principle of "prior occupation of a terra nullius" and trying to justify the incorporation of Tokdo into its territory in February 1905. But as so many old documents prove, Tokdo had not been a terra nullius before February 1905, but had long been part of the Korean territory.

Now, the Japanese government is shifting its position to its "historical title." Here again the Japanese side has the burden of proof to substantiate its historical ownership of Tokdo. This assertion also contradicts the action Japan took in February 1905 under the pretext of acquiring a terra nullius. Why should Japan have had to acquire the island anew if it had been an inherent part of its territory?

Today the Japanese government is considering proclaiming a 200-mile exclusive economic zone and is asserting its ownership of Tokdo. The maps appended to the Japanese government-authorized geography textbooks for elementary and secondary schools show Tokdo as Japanese territory. This is not a salutary action since it is a continuation of an imperial expansionist policy of the past and is detrimental to the promotion of good neighborliness between the two countries.