Japan, S. Korea Dispute Ocean Area

Both Japan and South Korea on Tuesday laid claim to waters between them, but they sidestepped the volatile issue of who owns two tiny islands in the Sea of Japan’s rich fishing grounds.

The Japanese Cabinet approved a plan to establish a 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone in the area under the U.N. Law of the Sea treaty, a series of coordinated rules that took effect in 1994 to provide more equity in the carving-up of the world’s ocean resources. Hours later, Seoul followed suit.

In their announcements, however, both sides deliberately declined to assert sovereignty over two rocky volcanic islands known as Takeshima in Japan and Tok Do in South Korea.

Earlier, competing claims to the islands sparked tensions in both nations when Japan filed a diplomatic protest against South Korea’s construction of a wharf on one of the islands. Foreign Minister Yukihiko Ikeda reaffirmed Japan’s claim to the islands and demanded a halt to the work, setting off protests in Seoul.

In turn, South Korean President Kim Young Sam abruptly canceled a scheduled meeting with top Japanese legislators, and South Korea staged military exercises near the islands last week.

Japan claimed the islands in 1905 in its march toward colonization of Korea, but Seoul says that it has owned the islands since 512 and has the documents to prove it. Both sides, however, may let the territorial matter rest for now and instead concentrate on jointly designating fish hauls to conserve the area’s maritime resources.