View Ancient Map Of The 18th Century In Spain, President Moon Calls South Korea's Dokdo Island

South Korean President Moon Jae-in. (Wikimedia Commons/Korea.net)

JAKARTA - South Korean President Moon Jae-in said he believes the 18th-century map shown to him by the Spanish Senate Library shows Dokdo Island has always been part of South Korea, called Cheong Wa Dae or South Korea's Presidential Office.

Launching the Korea Herald on Thursday, June 17, this statement was issued while President Moon was in Spain, following a visit to Austria and previously attending the Group 7 (G7) Summit of Countries in the UK, last weekend.

The map, produced in the 1730s and believed to be the oldest drawn by Europeans, shows Dokdo Island as part of Joseon, the kingdom that predated modern Korea, the presidential office said.

The dispute over the claims of South Korea's version of Dokdo Island and Japan's version of Takeshima Island has recently escalated. South Korea protested the map of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics marking the island as Japanese territory. In contrast, South Korea held military exercises on the island starting last Tuesday.

Later, the planned meeting of Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga with President Moon Jae-in on the sidelines of the G7 summit last week was canceled. Japan also denied the news of President Moon's visit to Japan and meeting PM Suga on the sidelines of the Olympics later.

"There is no truth in the report", Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said at a press conference, declined to comment further, as quoted by Reuters Tuesday, June 15.

South Korean military viewing tower at Liancourt, Dokdo Island. (Wikimedia Commons/Ulleungdont)

Japan has repeatedly made territorial claims to Dokdo, while South Korea has effectively controlled the islands with small police detachments since its liberation from Japanese colonial rule in 1945.

Last month, South Korea called for a boycott of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in protest after a map showing the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Torch Relay route marked Dokdo Island as Japanese territory. Reportedly, Japan refused to correct the map.

In April, South Korea's Ministry of Defense firmly rejected Japan's claim to Dokdo Island, in a Japanese junior high school textbook in early April. Of the 296 books approved by the Japanese Government, 30 of them are for social science lessons. It contains Tokyo's claim to sovereignty over Dokdo Island.

Last year, South Korea's Foreign Ministry lodged a strong protest, because Japan alluded to Dokdo Island in the country's defense white paper, Yonhap reported. In the book, Japan mentions Dokdo's unfinished status with South Korea, such as the status of the Kuril Islands which is disputed with Russia.

To note, Japan's claim to Dokdo or Takeshima in Japan has been going on for a long time. Since 2005, Dokdo's name has always been included in the diplomat's blue book and the Japanese defense white paper.

On August 25-26 2019, South Korea held a massive military exercise on Dokdo Island, attended by all elements of the Army, Navy, and Air Force. In addition to the Navy's special forces, this exercise was also attended by Marines, F-15Ks fighter jets, to the Aegis Destroyer Sejong The Great.

The drills took place after South Korea withdrew from an intelligence-sharing agreement with Japan. Meanwhile, Japan removed South Korea from the list of trusted trading partners, as reported by Reuters on August 25, 2019.