A U.S. government naming agency has reversed its decision over the sovereignty of the remote South Korean islets of Dokdo, redefining the islets as South Korean one week after having recategorized them as being of "undesignated sovereignty" to reflect Japan's claim.

The Web site of the Board on Geographic Names (BGN) reinstated South Korea's sovereignty early Thursday morning (Korean Standard Time), just hours after U.S. President George W. Bush ordered that recognition of South Korea's sovereignty over Dokdo be restored in the BGN's database.

"I asked Condi Rice to review it, and the database will be restored (to) where it was seven days ago," Bush said in a joint interview with reporters from South Korea, China and Thailand just days before his departure on a tour of the three Asian nations.

Bush is scheduled to meet with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Seoul next week to discuss cementing ties between the two allies. Bush will be on his way to Beijing to attend the Aug. 8 opening ceremonies of the Olympics.

Lsst week, the BGN changed Dokdo's status from South Korean territory to "undesignated sovereignty" on its Web site, infuriating South Koreans, who still harbor bitter memories of Japan's brutal colonial rule over Korea from 1910 to 1945.

Dennis Wilder, a White House Asia adviser, told reporters that ``a very high-level'' South Korean government official contacted the Bush administration about the decision. Bush asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to look into the matter, Wilder said, and the United States determined that the change ``was not warranted at this time.''

``We regret that this change in designation was perceived by South Koreans as some sort of change in our policy,'' Wilder was quoted as saying by The Associated Press.

South Korea's Ambassador to Washington Lee Tae-sik said, "President Bush instructed that (the database) be reinstated to the state before the Dokdo dispute occurred," adding that Bush "himself made the decision and ordered that the decision be implemented immediately."

Lee said Bush's decision was conveyed to him by Deputy National Security Advisor James F. Jeffrey.

South Korea welcomed the Bush administration's renewed support for Seoul's control of Dokdo, a cluster of rocky islets in the East Sea that are also claimed by Japan.

"We welcome the U.S. decision and appraise it highly," Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young was quoted as saying. He said his ministry will reveal a more concrete stance on the U.S. decision in a formal statement to be issued later in the day.

Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan, right, smiles, as he shows U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Alexander Vershbow, a printout from the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Web site, during his meeting with him at the ministry in Seoul, Thursday. / Yonhap



By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

The government Thursday hailed a U.S. decision to reinstate the islets of Dokdo as Korean territory in a database, calling it a sign of restored relations between Seoul and Washington.

``This reflects the restoration of the Korea-U.S. alliance and mutual trust,'' Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Lee Dong-kwan said in a statement. ``We feel that this exceptionally swift response is a result of President George W. Bush's full understanding of the South Korean sentiment and also reflects deep trust and friendship between the leaders of both nations.''

President Lee Myung-bak instructed his secretaries to take a long-term, strategic approach to the Dokdo issue, the spokesman said.

``Since we're already in virtual control of Dokdo, our steady efforts will be eventually acknowledged by the international community, as well as by our next generation,'' Lee was quoted as by the spokesman.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Moon Taep-young said, ``Our government welcomes the U.S. decision and highly appreciates this. We will continue our diplomatic efforts to raise awareness of the issue in the United States.''

President Bush said Wednesday that he had asked Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to review the recognition of South Korea's sovereignty over its easternmost islets of Dokdo and that the seven days prior position be restored in the database of the Board on Geographic Names (BGN), a U.S. federal naming agency.

"As to the database, I asked (Secretary of State Condoleezza) Rice to review it and the database will be restored to where it was ... seven days ago," Bush said in a joint interview with reporters from South Korea, China and Thailand ahead of his trip to the three Asian nations.

Bush is scheduled to visit South Korea Aug. 5-6. Lee and Bush had summit talks at the U.S. presidential retreat Camp David in April, when both leaders pledged a stronger alliance between the two countries.

The agency changed Dokdo's status from South Korean territory to ``undesignated sovereignty'' last week on its Web site, adding fuel to the growing controversy over the Dokdo dispute with Japan, which lays claim to the islets.

Japan renewed its claim to Dokdo last month in a recently published educational handbook for teachers.

Located roughly halfway between South Korea and Japan in the East Sea, the rocky islets have been at the center of a decade-old row between the two neighboring countries. The area surrounding the islets is believed to be rich in fishing and undersea resources.

The islets were annexed by Japan along with the Korean Peninsula in 1910, but Tokyo claims its territorial rights to the islets were declared five years before the start of Japanese colonial rule between 1910 and 1945.

Seoul has stationed a 50-strong police contingent on Dokdo since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War to reinforce its ownership.

On Wednesday, a massive military drill involving warships and fighter jets was held near Dokdo in case of a hypothetical invasion of the rocky outcrops.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr