BEIJING, July 9 (Xinhuanet) -- Japan has released a white paper, in which it claims Japanese sovereignty over the disputed islands known as Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan. The claim has triggered huge protests on the South Korean side. The row over the islands is a cause of renewed tension in already strained relations between the two countries.
Wee Yong-sub, deputy spokesperson of S. Korean Defense Ministry, said, "After the content in the Japanese Defense White Paper is officially confirmed, the South Korean Defense Ministry will summon the Japanese defence official to Seoul to lodge a protest and request its immediate correction.
Dokdo is clearly South Korean territory historically, geographically and under international law, and there's no dispute over its sovereignty. Dokdo is not a subject of negotiation nor judicial settlement. If Japan does not preferentially withdraw its Dokdo sovereignty claim, there will be no hope for the South Korea-Japan Defense Exchange and Cooperation."
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