South Korea has rejected Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s renewed claim to disputed islets in the East Sea, setting off the latest round of diplomatic friction over one of the region’s most enduring territorial disputes.
A senior official at the presidential office in Seoul said on Tuesday there was no ambiguity about who controlled the rocky outcrops – known as Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan – describing them as “an integral part of Korean territory historically, geographically and under international law”, according to the Yonhap News Agency.
The official added that Seoul would “sternly and firmly respond to Japan’s unjust claims”, marking the strongest statement on the issue made by Lee Jae-myung’s administration since he became president in June.
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Takaichi, who became Japan’s first female prime minister in October, made the remark during a session of the House of Representatives Budget Committee earlier that same day when pressed by a lawmaker about what he described as South Korea’s “illegal occupation” of the islets.
She responded that “Takeshima is clearly Japan’s inherent territory in light of historical facts and under international law”, and said her government would respond “resolutely” while working to ensure its position was widely understood.
The islets, which are also known as the Liancourt Rocks, sit roughly halfway between South Korea’s Ulleungdo island and Japan’s Oki Islands.