Seoul expresses regret over Japan's Dokdo claim in school curriculum

SEOUL, July 17 (UPI) -- South Korea expressed regret over Japan's decision to teach high school students geography and history, containing its claim to Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo, starting next year.

The Japanese government announced Tuesday it would start teaching high school students with a revised teaching guideline that includes the teaching of Dokdo Islets and Diaoyu Islands as their territory, Yonhap reported.

Japan decided to move the start year for the curriculum by three years, from 2022 to 2019.

"The government of the Republic of Korea expresses deep regret over Japan's revision of high school teaching guideline that strengthens its claim to Korea's indigenous territory," said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Noh Kyu-duk at a press briefing on Tuesday.

"The Japanese government would lose its opportunity to move onto new future and repent its past wrongdoings if it continues to infuse wrongful historical facts related to our territory Dokdo," he added.

Japan has claimed the South Korean islet of Dokdo and Chinese Diaoyu Islands their territory in its school textbooks, diplomatic and defense papers. Their claim has sparked outrage in its neighboring countries of South Korea and China, causing diplomatic disputes on events involving historical views.