Seoul’s foreign ministry expressed a strong protest against Tokyo on Tuesday as Japan’s weather agency included South Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo in a tsunami advisory issued after a 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck Japan.

In a map showing tsunami alerts on the Japan Meteorological Agency’s website, the rocky islets were highlighted in yellow, along with other regions on Japan’s west coast, indicating tsunami advisories were issued for the areas.

The powerful quake struck the Noto Peninsula and surrounding areas in Japan’s Ishikawa Prefecture on New Year’s Day, reportedly killing several people and causing tsunamis on South Korea’s east coast.

No South Korean casualties were reported in the tsunami so far, according to the ministry.

“Our government has strongly protested against Japan through a diplomatic channel and demanded corrective measures,” foreign ministry spokesperson Lim Soo-suk said in a briefing.

South Korea will continue to respond sternly to Japan’s unreasonable claims, he added, st
ressing that “no territorial dispute exists” regarding Dokdo.

“Dokdo is an integral part of Korean territory historically, geographically and under international law,” he said.

South Korea, however, did not call in any Japanese officials to lodge the protest, a ministry official told reporters on the condition of anonymity.

Dokdo, which lies closer to South Korea in the body of water between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, has long been a thorn in relations between the two countries. South Korea keeps a small police detachment on the islets, effectively controlling them.

Source: Yonhap News Agency