A U.S. lawmaker has voiced support for a grassroots movement by ethnic Koreans living in the United States to rename the Sea of Japan.

The Korean American Voters’ Council said late on Saturday that Congressman Bill Pascrell had issued a statement to the United States Board on Geographic Names, urging an investigation into the naming of the body of water lying between the Asian mainland and the Japanese archipelago.

He said many voters have voiced their concerns toward the name “Sea of Japan” which Pascrell said he shared, and that the term “East Sea” has been used independently or with the “Sea of Japan” for hundreds of years.

The statement continued, stating official institutions and groups including the National Geographic Society and Google now use both the “East Sea” and the “Sea of Japan” in their images and publications.

Pascrell said the USBGN should rethink its current position on the issue as the use of the term “East Sea” increases.