Foreign Ministry Says Japan's Foreign Minister Must "Immediately Withdraw" Dokdo Sovereignty Claim...Summons Senior Embassy Official in Seoul

On February 20, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs lodged a strong protest and demanded the immediate withdrawal of the Japanese foreign minister's claim of sovereignty over Dokdo made in a foreign affairs address to the National Assembly. This type of claim by the Japanese foreign minister regarding Dokdo, an inherent part of the Republic of Korea's territory, has been repeated for 13 consecutive years.

In a statement issued that day under the name of its spokesperson, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, "We strongly protest the fact that the Japanese government has repeated its unjust claim of sovereignty over Dokdo through the foreign affairs address by its foreign minister to the National Assembly, and we urge that this be withdrawn immediately."

The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed, "We once again make it clear that the Japanese government's unjust claims do not have any impact whatsoever on our sovereignty over Dokdo," adding, "We reiterate that we will respond firmly to any provocation by Japan."

The spokesperson also warned, "The Japanese government must clearly recognize that repeatedly making unjust claims over Dokdo, which is clearly our inherent territory in terms of history, geography, and international law, does nothing to help build future-oriented Korea-Japan relations."

In connection with Japan's foreign minister reiterating unjust territorial claims over Dokdo in a foreign-policy address to the National Diet, Matsuo Hirotaka, Minister-Counselor of the Embassy of Japan in Korea, was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Jongno-gu, Seoul on Feb. 20, 2026. Yonhap News

In connection with this issue, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Matsuo Hirotaka, Minister at the Embassy of Japan in Korea, to its building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, that day to lodge a protest. It appears that the ministry protested against Japan's chronic, 13-year-long repetition of outrageous remarks about Dokdo.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.