SEOUL-- South Korea has lodged a complaint with Japan over its military video which describes South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo as a disputed territory, the foreign ministry said Wednesday.
The video clip, posted last week by the Japanese Joint Staff Office under the Self-Defense Forces, shows the map of Northeast Asia with some areas, like Dokdo, marked in red circles to state that they are under territorial dispute.
It shows Dokdo as "Takeshima Island", the name Japan uses to refer to the islets. The clip, made in English and French, is a promotional video on Japan's Indo-Pacific vision.
"We have clearly expressed regrets and delivered our complaint to the Japanese side through a diplomatic channel," a foreign ministry official said.
"Dokdo is our inherent territory historically, geographically and by international law. As we have repeatedly emphasized, the government intends to deal with Japan's unjust claims to Dokdo in a strict and firm manner," the official said.
Dokdo has long been a recurring source of tension between the two neighbors, as Tokyo continues to lay claim to the East Sea islets in its policy papers, public statements and school textbooks.
Source: Yonhap News Agency