Four memorials on the 1950-53 Korean War installed in the United States have added the Korean name for the body of water between the Korean Peninsula and Japan after only using its Japanese name, the veterans ministry said Thursday.

Memorials in Maryland, Ohio, Lake County in Indiana and Cayuga County in New York have included the Korean name “East Sea” in addition to the Japanese moniker “Sea of Japan” on maps and other explanatory material displayed at the sites over the past year after the ministry requested the change, it said.

Seoul has long campaigned for its own name, the East Sea, or the use of both names to refer to the body of water, arguing that the Sea of Japan is a legacy of Tokyo’s imperialistic past. The naming has been a source of diplomatic friction between Seoul and Tokyo.

As of May last year, 14 Korean War memorials in the U.S. had been discovered to only be using the Japanese name to refer to the sea, prompting the request for changes through diplomatic missions, the ministry said.

An
official at the foreign ministry said the government has actively explained Seoul’s position over the naming of the sea and has continuously requested officials in charge of Korean War memorials for the changes.

A veterans ministry official said the recent changes at the four memorials appear to reflect the improvement in South Korea-Japan relations, which have long been marred by historical spats.

Bilateral ties between Seoul and Tokyo have warmed significantly under the current Yoon Suk Yeol administration, which has prioritized bolstering trilateral security cooperation between the Asian neighbors and their shared ally, the United States.

The veterans ministry said it plans to continue requesting changes to the remaining facilities that only use the Japanese name to ensure that they also show the East Sea name.

Source: Yonhap News Agency