TOKYO (Sputnik) — South Korea has lodged a protest against Japan over claims to the disputed Liancourt Rocks islets, which were presented as genuine Japanese territory in its diplomatic bluebook for 2017, the ministry said on Tuesday.
"The government of the Republic of Korea strongly protests the Japanese government’s repeated inclusion of unjust sovereignty claims over Dokdo, clearly an integral part of the ROK’s territory historically, geographically, and under international law, in its Diplomatic Bluebook issued on April 25. The ROK government urges the Japanese government to immediately withdraw such claims," the statement read, using the nationally condoned names for both South Korea and the islands.
In 1905, Japan claimed the group of islets, classifying them as part of the Shimane Prefecture.
After World War II, the archipelago was claimed back by South Korea and is now under the control of Seoul. South Korea does not recognize Japan’s claims to the islets and considers them as being historically Korean territories.
