The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday lodged a protest with Japan over its plan to name several uninhabited islands, four of which are claimed by Taiwan, saying there was no room for a compromise on sovereignty.
“We will continue to protest it until March [when Japan is expected to determine the guidelines for naming the islands],” said Su Qi-cheng (蘇啟誠), deputy secretary-general of the ministry’s Association of East Asian Relations, which is in charge of Japan affairs.
The ministry protested to Japan when the Sankei Shimbun revealed the plan in November, Su said.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura said on Monday that Tokyo was planning to name 39 uninhabited islands, including several adjacent islets of the Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚台) — known as Senkaku in Japan — sparking concern from both Beijing and Taipei.
Fujimura said the 39 islands were among the cardinal points selected by the Japanese government to help define its so-called exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Su said that the ministry has stuck uncompromisingly to its position on the sovereignty of the islands, although the move would have no impact on Taiwanese fishing rights in the disputed Diaoyutai Islands area.
The naming of the islands is aimed at helping Tokyo establish its EEZ and to “enhance control” of the islands, Japanese media reported.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin (劉為民) said on Monday that the Diaoyutais and adjacent islets have been an integral part of Chinese territory since ancient times and China has “indisputable sovereignty” over them.
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