SEOUL, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) -- South Korea on Tuesday lodged a strong protest against Japan's repeated territorial claims on its easternmost islets, called Dokdo here and Takeshima in Japan, lying halfway between the two countries.
Seoul's defense ministry called in a defense attache from Japanese Embassy in Seoul to protest against Japan's 2016 defense white paper in which the islets are described as Japan's territory.
It marked the 12th consecutive year since 2005 that Japan claimed sovereignty over the islets in the annual white paper.
The ministry expressed deep regrets over the Japanese government in its protest letter, delivered to the summoned attache, saying Japan must immediately stop making useless claims, squarely face history and make efforts to open a new future for relations between South Korea and Japan.
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