New discovery in Brussels reinforces China's sovereignty over Diaoyu Dao

BRUSSELS, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- A recently-discovered map drawn in 1832 by a French colonel marked today's Diaoyu Dao as "Tiaoyu-Su," a Chinese Minnan (southern Fujian) dialect pronunciation for the territory, adding new proof to China's sovereignty over it.

The map, drawn by French Colonel Pierre Lapie and his son in 1832, was discovered at a bookstore called Schwilden at the Galerie Bortier Street in Brussels last weekend by Liao Liqiang, Chinese ambassador to Belgium.

"If you think this is just a coincidence, then you should take a closer look at history," said Liao when talking about his discovery.

Even Japan's earliest literature that has mentioned Diaoyu Dao -- Illustrated Outline of the Three Countries, written by Hayashi Shihei in 1785, contained a map that depicted Diaoyu Dao with the same color as China's mainland, indicating that Diaoyu Dao was part of China, he said.

The Map of the Three Provinces and 36 Islands of Ryukyu in the book put Diaoyu Dao as being apart from the 36 islands of Ryukyu and colored it the same as China's mainland.

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