South Korea, Japan Make No Progress in Talks on Disputed Island
Friday, April 21, 2006
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=B7South Korea, Japan Race to Avert a Clash
SEOUL, South Korea - South Korea and Japan made no progress in
defusing mounting tensions over Tokyo's plan to send survey ships into
waters claimed by both countries, but planned to keep talking, a South
Korean diplomat said.
"We exchanged opinions, but failed to find common ground," South Korean
Vice Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said early Saturday after a series
of talks with Japanese Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs Shotaro
Yachi, who made an emergency trip to the South Korean capital Friday.
The two sides planned to break for the night and meet again later
Saturday, Yu said.
Japan has reportedly agreed to delay the survey while the talks
continue. Its coast guard survey ships had been scheduled to start the
study as early as Thursday, but have waited off the coast as tensions
flared.
South Korea has dispatched about 20 gunboats to the disputed waters,
and has told Japan to stay away.
The disputed waters surround rocky outcroppings - called Dokdo by
Koreans and Takeshima in Japan - that lie halfway between the
countries and are claimed by both. The area, a rich fishing ground, is
also believed to have methane hydrate deposits, a potential source of
natural gas.
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