Pyongyang, August 16 (KCNA) -- The U.S. Department of State officially announced its stand that the East Sea of Korea should be marked as "Japan Sea"

This has lashed all Koreans into fury as it is an act of shielding Japan's moves for overseas aggression and seriously hurting their self-respect.

As known well worldwide, the designation of East Sea of Korea is the name of the sea used by the Koreans for a long period.

Our ancestors got a profound knowledge and understanding of the East Sea of Korea, while exploring it from ancient times, and they were the first to designate the sea as the East Sea of Korea.

These facts are recorded in historic documents of Korea including "The Chronicles of the Three States" and on the monument to King Kwanggaetho tomb built in 414.

Since the 13th century, the Western geographers and explorers have designated the sea between Korea and Japan as the "Orient Sea" i.e. "East Sea" on world maps and called it "sea of Korea".

The name of the sea was distorted owing to the Japanese imperialists' military occupation of Korea though its designation was used by Koreans throughout their history spanning thousands of years and universally recognized.

Reflected in the designation of "Japan Sea" is a bitter history of the Korean nation, a nation deprived of sovereignty.

The Japanese imperialists occupied Korea after fabricating the "Ulsa Five-point Treaty" in 1905. They got the International Hydrographic Organization registered the East Sea of Korea as "Japan Sea" by abusing the position of being a suzerain state in 1929.

The historic facts go to clearly prove that the designation of "Japan Sea" is a criminal designation the usage of which was forced by the Japanese imperialists in the period of their military occupation along with their occupation of Korea and a product of their policy for militaristic expansion.

The U.S. has supported Japan in its moves to designate the above-said sea as "Japan Sea" before the general meeting of the said organization to be held next year, disregarding stark historical facts and data and international usage and principles governing dominion and designation of seas. By doing so, it is fanning up Japan's ambition for territorial expansion which has become more undisguised from the outset of the new century.

The U.S. stand on designating the above-mentioned sea as "Japan Sea" reminds one of the "Taft-Katsura Agreement", a brigandish document as it provided a legal guarantee for the Japanese imperialists' occupation of Korea 106 years back.

Japan turned Korea into its colony by force of arms in the last century by dint of the above-said agreement. Because this agreement provided Japan with favorable international conditions and environment for converting Korea into its colony.

This unreasonable behavior of the U.S. encouraging Japan in its overseas expansion, oblivious of the lesson taught by history, will not escape world public criticism.