South Korean Navy Conducts Drills Near Liancourt Rocks Islets Claimed by Japan

South Korea's Navy conducted a maritime drill to defend the country's easternmost Liancourt Rocks in the East Sea, which are a source of territorial dispute with Japan, Yonhap reported on Wednesday citing Navy officials.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — A landing drill may also be conducted as part of the biannual military exercise to guard the islets if weather conditions permit, according to the South Korean news agency.

The maritime drills were initially planned for November 23, but were postponed.

According to reports, Japan has lodged a protest in response to the exercise.

Japanese relations with South Korea have been marred by territorial disagreements over the Liancourt Rocks in the Sea of Japan, known as Dokdo in South Korea and as Takeshima in Japan. Japan colonized the Korean Peninsula from 1910-45, but the Liancourt Rocks have been administered by South Korea since 1954.

The maritime exercises have been carried out by the South Korean Navy and Coast Guard biannually since 1986.

On August 2, the Japanese Defense Ministry published a white paper in which it deemed the Liancourt Rocks its sovereign territory.