Korea Herald publishes book on Dokdo

SEOUL, June 9 (Yonhap) -- The Korea Herald, South Korea's leading
English-language newspaper, said Tuesday it has published a new book analyzing
the conflicting historical, political and legal positions on the country's
easternmost islets of Dokdo.

The 464-page book, titled "Insight into Dokdo," is written in English and
features 22 essays by top Korean and foreign scholars, all but one of which
appeared in the Korea Herald between July 2008 and January 2009, the paper said.
Dokdo has been at the center of a long-standing diplomatic conflict between South
Korea and Japan, due to the latter's territorial claims to the rocky islets.
Dokdo lies just 90 kilometers east of South Korea's Ulleung Island in the East
Sea, while the closest Japanese territory of Oki Island in Shimane Prefecture is
more than 160 kilometers away.
Since 1954, the South Korean Coast Guard has stationed a small contingent on
Dokdo as a symbol of Seoul's ownership over the islets.
"The new book is intended to increase global awareness of the validity of Korea's
sovereignty over Dokdo," said Yu Kun-ha, managing editor of the Korea Herald.
"The authors all share the view that Korea's claims are much stronger than
Japan's. They note that Korea's position will be further strengthened as the
amount of historical and legal evidence in Korea's favor will only increase over
time."
Yu said "Insight into Dokdo" is also intended to make up for the dearth of
foreign-language books covering the complicated aspects involved in the Dokdo
issue as it treats them more extensively than available pamphlets.
The book is priced at 29,000 won (US$23).
ycm@yna.co.kr
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