Korea raps Japan over teacher's guide on Dokdo

Published : Jul 17, 2018 - 16:33 Updated : Jul 17, 2018 - 16:33

SEOUL/TOKYO -- South Korea denounced Japan's revision Tuesday of education material to intensify its territorial claim over the Dokdo islets in the East Sea.

Earlier in the day, the Japanese government announced an amendment to the teacher's guide for use at high schools in the direction of further clarifying its position that Dokdo belongs to Japan.

Publishers of Japanese high school textbooks were required to describe Dokdo as the country's territory starting in 2022 under a set of binding guidelines issued in March by the education ministry.

(Yonhap)

But the teacher's guide, which includes more detailed rules, calls on them to implement the measure next year.

South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed regret over the move and urged Japan to retract it.

In a statement, it pointed out Japan is making an "absurd" assertion based on a "wrong history perception" over Dokdo, which is arguably part of South Korea's territory.

By teaching its future generations this material, Japan is giving up a chance to express regret for its past misdeeds and move toward a new future, the ministry's spokesman Noh Kyu-duk said.

He stressed that South Korea has sovereignty over its easternmost islets, which has been proven by historical and geographical facts, as well as international law.

The ministry called in Kohei Maruyama, a minister at the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, to deliver a formal protest message. (Yonhap)