Seoul pushes back on Japan over disputed islands

TOKYO, Jan. 25 (UPI) -- South Korea chastised Japan Friday after Tokyo reiterated its claims on a string of contested islands.

Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said in a speech to Parliament Japan was maintaining its claim on the so-called Dokdo islands in the East China Sea, which prompted a stiff response from the South Koreans, which also claims jurisdiction over the tiny islands.

"Such groundless claims and useless attempts repeated over time only show the world that Japan is still under the spell of imperialism," the South Korean foreign ministry said in a written statement. The ministry said the hard-line attitude of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government was needlessly belligerent, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency said.