Neighbors at odds

(Baonghean) - Being geographically close is a favorable condition for countries to develop cooperative relations, but sometimes neighbors have tensions and disagreements that are difficult to resolve arising from conflicts in positions and interests.

Neighborly discord - that is what the world is witnessing in the relations between Korea - Japan and Russia - EU...

Dokdo/Takeshima Islands are disputed between South Korea and Japan. Photo: dapd

Ancient maps spark new disagreements

The long-standing dispute over sovereignty over the Dokdo/Takeshima islands has had a significant impact on relations between South Korea and Japan. The smoldering fire could even flare up after the discovery of a map made by a Korean cartographer and geologist in 1861, asserting that Dokdo/Takeshima belongs to the land of kimchi.

According to DW, the map depicts the Korean Peninsula, in which Dokdo/Takeshima is located near Ulleung Island off the eastern coast of Japan - and Tokyo has disputed control of this archipelago for many years, asserting that Dokdo/Takeshima is an inseparable part of the Japanese island group.

Ironically, the map was in a Japanese collection and had previously been in a library in Pyongyang, North Korea. The numbers on the map indicate the date it was found.30/8/1932, when the Korean Peninsula was still under Japanese colonial rule.

Almost immediately, the Korean media quickly reported on the discovery of the map, viewing it as further evidence that Dokdo/Takeshima - where their armed police force is permanently stationed - belongs to South Korean sovereignty.

Seoul's stance is that Dokdo/Takeshima only fell into Tokyo's hands when the Japanese Empire invaded the Korean Peninsula in 1910, and the islands were "given" to Shimane Prefecture - the closest place on mainland Japan - until Tokyo was defeated in World War II and surrendered in August 1945.

The 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty is now crucial to Seoul in its long-running dispute with its neighbor. South Korea insists that the original drafts of the treaty still included Dokdo among the thousands of islands and territories seized by Japan and returned to their historical owners across Asia.

However, in the 6th draft, due to “confusion”, the place names were omitted, leaving only 3 large Korean archipelagos to be named. On that basis, Seoul always insisted that the disputed islands must be returned to their rightful owners, meaning that they clearly belong to Korea.

However, in Tokyo, the Japanese government is now rejecting Seoul's claims, insisting that the disputed islands are an inherent part of Japanese territory, based entirely on historical facts and international law.

A large section on the Japanese Foreign Ministry website states: “South Korea has occupied Takeshima without any basis under international law. Any measures taken by South Korea regarding Takeshima based on such illegal occupation are legally unjustified. Japan will continue to seek a calm and peaceful resolution of the dispute over territorial sovereignty over Takeshima based on international law.”

To further strengthen its argument, Japan proposed taking the dispute to the International Court of Justice in The Hague and giving both sides a chance to prove their claims, but Seoul has so far rejected this proposal.

Therefore, it can be said that in the situation where the Korea-Japan neighbor relationship is "not good" due to the sovereignty dispute over the Dokdo/Takeshima islands, no one has shown any signs of concession and has not invited a third party to mediate, the discovery of the new map is like igniting a fire that has been smoldering for a long time.

Siemens gas turbines. Photo: dpa

Russian sanctions spiral

The news that US President Donald Trump “helplessly” signed a bill to sanction Russia, which he himself said contained several unconstitutional provisions, had not yet cooled down in the newspapers, but a few days later, Russia found itself facing a new round of sanctions from the European Union (EU).

Since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, the EU has been cracking down on its neighbor, and the news of Siemens turbines being shipped to the peninsula has sparked a new round of sanctions.

The EU imposed sanctions on three Russian citizens and three companies on August 4 after gas turbines purchased from Germany’s Siemens were shipped to Crimea. Brussels has for years pursued a strict policy of refusing to recognize Russia’s annexation of the peninsula, and the 28-member bloc targeted 153 people and 40 companies with sanctions.

The names affected by the latest round of sanctions include Russian Deputy Energy Minister Andrey Cherezov and the ministry’s head, Evgeny Grabchak. These officials will be subject to “punishment” including asset freezes and travel bans with the EU.

“The EU has added three Russian citizens and three Russian companies involved in the transfer of gas turbines to Crimea to the list of individuals and entities subject to restrictive measures for actions undermining the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine,” a statement from the European Commission said.

The agency also believes that establishing an independent power plant serving Crimea would only further support the peninsula's secession from Ukraine, and gas turbines are an important component in the development of new power plants.

According to German newspapers, last month Siemens also confirmed that it was in the process of scaling down its Russian operations after discovering that four turbines had been “illegally modified” and shipped to Crimea.

For its part, faced with a series of negative news, Moscow could not help but be angry, and on August 4, the country's Foreign Ministry immediately responded, calling the EU's new sanctions "hostile and baseless".

It is even possible that the Russian bear will retaliate in the near future, when it is dissatisfied with the fact that trade disagreements have been "politicized to such an absurd level".

Thu Giang