The Japanese government announced that it had lodged a strong protest regarding a Korean research vessel conducting maritime survey activities near Dokdo.
On the 16th, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a press release stating, "On the 15th, we confirmed that the Korean research vessel Onnuri was moving around in the territorial waters west of Takeshima (the name Japan uses for Dokdo), deploying something like a wire into the sea."
Subsequently, Masaki Kanai, Director-General of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, reportedly conveyed Japan's protest to Kim Janghyun, Minister-Counselor at the Korean Embassy in Japan, asserting that Dokdo is historically and under international law Japan's inherent territory. Similarly, Yoshiyasu Iseki, Minister-Counselor at the Japanese Embassy in Korea, delivered the same protest to Kim Sanghun, Director-General for Asian and Pacific Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Japanese government has consistently objected whenever South Korea conducts maritime surveys around Dokdo. The South Korean government has repeatedly dismissed Japan's claims, stating that Dokdo is clearly Korea's inherent territory based on historical, geographical, and international law, and that "no assertion from the Japanese side can be accepted."
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