"Dokdo Established as Part of Korea"...1948 U.S. Far East Air Forces Report Unveiled

Northeast Asia History Foundation Receives and Unveils 222 Pages of Unreleased NARA Records
"Dokdo Clearly Established as Part of Korea in 1947"
Supplementing Postwar Historical Materials on Dokdo

A newly discovered classified U.S. military document confirms that the U.S. military recognized Dokdo as Korean territory during the 1948 Dokdo bombing incident. While postwar U.S. documents regarding sovereignty over Dokdo have shown varying perspectives depending on the period and agency, this material is notable because it is an internal investigation report by the U.S. military that explicitly identifies Dokdo as "part of Korea."

Part of the investigation report from the United States Far East Air Forces (FEAF). Northeast Asia History Foundation

The Northeast Asia History Foundation announced on the 7th that Professor Gap Saeng Jeon, a research professor at Sungkonghoe University’s East Asian Research Institute, has donated 222 pages of previously undisclosed Dokdo-related records that he confirmed and collected from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). The materials include the "Report of Bombing of Liancourt Rocks," prepared by the United States Far East Air Forces (FEAF). "Liancourt Rocks" is the Western name for Dokdo.

The key document is the FEAF report dated June 24, 1948. This report contains wording to the effect that "although it had been clearly established in September 1947 that Liancourt Rocks are part of Korea." The same report addresses the incident on June 8, 1948, when Korean fishermen operating near Dokdo were killed during a U.S. Air Force bombing exercise.

The Dokdo bombing incident is considered the post-liberation event with the largest number of casualties related to Dokdo. According to research by the Dokdo Research Institute of the Northeast Asia History Foundation, B-29 bombers of the U.S. Air Force departed from Okinawa and dropped bombs over Dokdo, resulting in 14 fishermen being killed or missing while working in the area. Although the number of injured and the scale of damage to vessels differ depending on the source, the incident was widely reported by domestic and international media at the time.

This newly uncovered document also provides insight into the administrative and military perception of Dokdo following Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers Instruction Note (SCAPIN) No. 677 in 1946. SCAPIN 677 explicitly excluded Ulleungdo, Dokdo, and Jeju-do from Japan’s territorial control. Subsequently, in 1947, Dokdo was designated as a U.S. bombing practice area, and in 1948, actual bombing training resulted in casualties among Korean fishermen.

On the 7th, Professor Jeon Gap-saeng from the Institute of East Asian Studies at Sungkonghoe University explained the background of the data collection during the 'Donation Ceremony of Unreleased Dokdo Materials Collected by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)' held at the Dokdo Experience Center of the Northeast Asian History Foundation in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

Until now, Japan has cited the designation of Dokdo as a U.S. bombing practice area as one of the grounds for its claim to sovereignty over the islets. However, the current FEAF report carries a different historical significance, as it is an internal U.S. military document investigating the bombing incident that records Dokdo as part of Korea. It has also been reported that the document includes a provision requiring prior notification to the Commander of U.S. Forces in Korea before using the bombing range that includes Dokdo.

However, it is difficult to explain the entirety of the U.S. government’s postwar perception of Dokdo based solely on this material. The so-called "Rusk Letter," sent in August 1951 by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Dean Rusk to the Korean ambassador to the United States, contains language to the effect that Dokdo "has never been treated as part of Korea." The Japanese government has cited this as the main basis for its territorial claim over Dokdo. In contrast, Korean researchers have argued that the Rusk Letter was a confidential diplomatic document and cannot serve as decisive evidence, as it does not supersede the final legal determination of the San Francisco Peace Treaty.

Academic circles also interpret the drafting process of the San Francisco Peace Treaty as complex. Research suggests that in the early U.S. drafts from 1947 to 1949, Dokdo was included within Korea’s territorial scope, but in drafts after late 1949, it was either deemed Japanese territory or not specified at all. In the final treaty, Japan was required to renounce all rights and claims to Korea, with Jeju-do, Geomundo, and Ulleungdo cited as examples, but Dokdo was not mentioned. This omission later became a source of interpretive conflict between Korea and Japan.

The photo shows a giant Taegeukgi flag taken by a drone over Dokdo on June 29. Professor Kyungdeok Seo's team from the Department of Creative Convergence at Sungshin Women's University. Photo by Yonhap News.

The newly uncovered material also includes a document entitled "Confirmation of Ownership of Dokdo Affiliated with Ulleungdo," reported by the Ulleungdo magistrate to the Gyeongsangbuk-do Governor in 1946, as well as a handwritten copy of Magistrate Sim Heung-taek’s report. This report is known to have been submitted by the Ulleungdo magistrate to higher authorities after Japan incorporated Dokdo into Shimane Prefecture in 1905, using the wording "Dokdo belonging to this county." While the content of the report was previously known, this is the first time it has been newly confirmed in the form of standalone documents.

Experts interpret these materials as important supplementary sources, given the lack of sufficient primary records on Dokdo from the period immediately following liberation until the establishment of the government in 1948. They point out that, beyond identifying responsibility for the bombing incident, the documents require follow-up research because they show how the U.S. military understood Dokdo in terms of administrative rights and jurisdiction at the time.

At the donation ceremony held at the Dokdo Experience Center in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, on this day, Professor Jeon stated, "The materials are vast and have not been digitized, so I had to check and collect each record individually," adding, "I hope these materials will be well utilized for Dokdo research and education."

The Northeast Asia History Foundation plans to make these historical records available to the public through a special exhibition at the Dokdo Experience Center.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.