South Korean PM visits disputed islands

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Source: CCTV.com | 07-30-2008 09:41

South Korean Prime Minister Han Seung-soo has visited a group of islets at the center of a territorial dispute with Japan, a trip that has been criticized by Tokyo.

South Korean prime minister Han Seung-soo (C) and other officials visit the small cluster of islands, called Dokdo in Korean and Takeshima in Japanese, July 29, 2008. (Agencies)

Han is the highest-level official ever to travel to the rocky outcroppings lying about halfway between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. With him were the culture and transportation ministers.

He flew in by helicopter and stayed for about an hour.

The South Korean-controlled islets, called Dokdo in Korean and Takeshima in Japanese, have long been a source of discord between Seoul and its former colonial ruler Tokyo.

Han brought a memorial rock with sign reading: "The East Sea's our land Dokdo".

Han Seung-soo said, "Dokdo, the son of Ulleung island, is historically, geographically and nationally our land and our territory. This son island is our offspring."

A South Korean flag flutters aboard a tourship near islands in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) -- known as Takeshima in Japan and Dokdo in South Korea on July 16.(AFP)

The brief visit immediately drew fire from Tokyo.

Nobutaka Machimura, the Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary, said, "I don't think taking an action like this to highlight our differences is appropriate. We think it is important to deal with the matter calmly."

Han's trip came as the territorial row flared anew earlier this month when Japan said it would recommend in a government teaching manual that students learn about Tokyo's claims to the islets.

Editor:Zhang Yue