Seoul lodges protest against Tokyo's repeated claim over Dokdo

A visitor looks at photos of South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo at a museum in central Seoul on July 15, 2025. Yonhap

SEOUL, July 15 (AJP) - South Korea on Tuesday lodged a strongly-worded protest against Japan's latest defense white paper, which once again repeats Tokyo's dubious claim to the country's easternmost islets of Dokdo.

The Japanese government officially released the white paper the same day after a Cabinet meeting approved it, explicitly laying claim to Dokdo by referring to it by the Japanese name Takeshima and describing it as a "disputed" territory that "still remains unresolved."

In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here urged Tokyo to retract the claim, saying, "We strongly protest against the Japanese government's repeated claim, which is incontestably inherent Korean territory from the historical, geographical and legal point of view."

The ministry also pledged to "respond resolutely to any attempt to undermine South Korea's sovereignty over Dokdo" and called in a Japanese Embassy official in Seoul to lodge an official complaint.

The Ministry of National Defense also separately summoned Hirofumi Inoue, Japan's defense attaché in Seoul to protest, urging immediate actions.

Tokyo has repeated the claim since 2005.

Kim Hee-su khs@ajunews.com