The International Hydrographic Organization's decision to continue using the Sea of Japan designation as the only name for the body of sea between Japan, South Korea, North Korea and Russia has been welcomed by the government as recognition of its longstanding position.
A new policy of creating digital charts with numbers used to designate sea areas is expected to have a limited impact on the debate over the naming.
"We won the part that we should have won," a senior Foreign Ministry official said Monday, referring to the expression in the proposal by the IHO's secretary-general, which was adopted by the IHO's online general assembly on Tuesday morning, Japan standard time.
Since 1992, when South Korea began insisting that the name "East Sea" be written along with the Sea of Japan, the government has consistently argued that the Sea of Japan is the only internationally established name for the body of water, based on IHO guidelines and studies of historical maps from around the world.
However, South Korea has in recent years lobbied North Korea and other countries and strengthened cooperation between the government and the private sector in an effort to establish its case, moves that rang alarm bells in Japan.
"The fact that 'East Sea' does not appear [in the proposal of the secretary general] at all is the result of Japan's efforts," a Foreign Ministry executive said, expressing the government's relief at the decision.
The creation of a digital version of the chart, which shows sea areas in a numerical format, was a planned compromise by the IHO that took into account South Korean public opinion to a certain extent, and the government's position is that it was unavoidable.
The digital version is expected to be provided to organizations involved in shipping operations, and the data will be stored in computers and other devices for use. It can contain more information than paper charts and, when combined with other data, can display information such as the location of users' ships and other vessels, and marine weather information.
A government official said that the digital version would not directly affect the Sea of Japan naming issue because it does not include the names of any sea areas.
However, there is no guarantee that South Korea will ease its insistence on its claim. A senior government official said, "We have no choice but to continue to take various opportunities in the future to promote the legitimacy of the designation of the Sea of Japan."
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