evidence: This is a report submitted to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs by an inspection team including Hakubo Sada. This report, entitled "A Confidential Inquiry into the Particulars of Korea’s Foreign Relations" records of "How Takeshima [Ulleungdo] and Matsushima [Dokdo] came to belong to Joseon [Korea]" which reveals that the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs clearly recognized Dokdo as Korean territory. [...] This is a regional notice announcing the incorporation of Dokdo into Japanese territory. Japan had been at war with Russia over its interests in Manchuria and the Korean peninsula since 1904, and needed the island to meet its military needs in the face of possible maritime clashes with Russia in the East Sea. Japan thus attempted to incorporate Dokdo in 1905 through this notice, claiming that the island was terra nullius. However, Shimane Prefecture Public Notice No. 40 was issued as part of Japan’s gradual aggression against Korea’s sovereign rights. Because the issuance of the regional notice was an illegal act that infringed on Korea’s territorial sovereignty over Dokdo, which Korea had firmly established historically, the notice had no legal force under international law. [...] > Korea's Position on Dokdo > Why Dokdo is Korean Territory ※ The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea holds all rights to this image and prohibits any reproduction or duplication without permission.