French public TV network, France 3, has stressed that ancient Korean royal records confiscated by French troops 140 years ago must be returned to South Korea.

During its news hour Tuesday, the second-largest French TV network introduced the story of how French troops in 1866 seized some 300 texts from the Joseon Dynasty royal archive.

The report said that South Korea’s repeated demands to have the documents returned were justified.

The TV station said the royal documents had long been forgotten by the French people and have been a key interest only to the South Koreans.

The documents are currently at the French national library in Paris.

South Korea in 1991 first asked for the return of the royal collection, which was discovered after being lost in storage for more than a hundred years. In 2001, the two countries tentatively agreed that France would permanently "lease" the books in exchange for ancient copies of the same books kept in South Korea.

France has rejected a return, citing no international precedent.