Japan opposes South Korea's call to rename the Sea of Japan as the "East Sea" or the "Sea of Peace" or "Sea of Friendship," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki told reporters Tuesday.
Seoul has called for the "East Sea" and more recently the other two names, believing the denotation Sea of Japan is a vestige of Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun suggested to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe last year that they give the sea a neutral name to resolve the long-running dispute, the presidential office said.