Russian Business Leader: "Why Call It the Sea of Japan? It Should Be the East Sea"

Shokhin, President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Proposes Renaming "Sea of Japan"
"Not Clearly Associated with Japan... Let's Call It the East Sea"
A Political Heavyweight Who Has Done Everything but Become President... Deputy Prime Minister Also Responds Favorably

A representative of Russian industry has proposed initiating discussions to change the name "Sea of Japan" to "East Sea." On September 4 (local time), Yonhap News Agency, citing TASS News Agency, reported that Aleksandr Shokhin, President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, stated at the "Greater Eurasia Partnership" session of the Eastern Economic Forum held in Vladivostok, Primorsky Krai, Russia, "I would like to propose a discussion on changing the name of the Sea of Japan."

Alexander Shohin, President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs. Photo by TASS News Agency

Shokhin mentioned that U.S. President Donald Trump had renamed the Gulf of Mexico as the American Gulf, saying, "There are currently many ideas regarding geographical names." He continued, "Why should we call it the Sea of Japan? Just as our forum is called the Eastern Economic Forum, we can call it the East Sea," emphasizing, "We should continue these discussions."

He further stated, "The Sea of Japan is not geographically clearly associated with Japan," and argued, "If it is renamed to the East Sea, the name would have greater objectivity and geographical consistency." However, given the context of his remarks, it appears that his proposal to use "East Sea" refers to the sea located east of Russia and Eurasia, rather than specifically adopting the Korean name for the sea.

According to the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Alexey Overchuk, Deputy Prime Minister for International Affairs, responded positively, saying, "We are living in an era when the impossible is becoming possible, so we can consider Shokhin's proposal to change the name of the Sea of Japan to the East Sea."

Currently, Russia refers to the East Sea as the Sea of Japan. Russian media outlet Rambler News explained, "South Korea already calls this sea the East Sea and has requested that it not be referred to as the Sea of Japan."

Shokhin has led the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, an economic organization in Russia, since 2005. Since the early 1990s, he has been known as a prominent pro-Korea figure, having played a leading role in implementing the reform policies of former Russian President Boris Yeltsin and having visited South Korea for decades. In Russia, he has served as a professor at Moscow State University, an economic advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Labor, Minister of Economy, Deputy Prime Minister, and a member of the State Duma.

The Japanese government continues to insist on using the names "Sea of Japan" for the East Sea and "Takeshima" for Dokdo. In July, a map included in a children's defense white paper distributed to Japanese elementary schools marked Dokdo as "Takeshima" and depicted it as Japanese territory, while labeling the East Sea as the "Sea of Japan," sparking controversy. However, it was reported that the phrase "Dokdo is Japan's inherent territory," which had been explicitly stated in previous defense white papers, was not included this time.