The military authorities revealed that on the 17th, for the first time under the Lee Jae-myung government, a defensive drill for Dokdo was conducted confidentially.
According to the military authorities, on this day the navy and the coast guard conducted a "Eastern Sea Territorial Protection Drill" on a scale similar to previous years. The military authorities refer to the defensive drill for Dokdo, conducted twice a year near Dokdo, as the Eastern Sea Territorial Protection Drill.
Similar to the exercises during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, this day's drill was conducted confidentially, with naval and coast guard vessels participating, while air power from the air force and navy did not participate. The Marine Corps did not conduct landing drills on Dokdo.
The military authorities explained, "This is a drill regularly conducted for the protection of our territory and national assets." This defensive drill for Dokdo is the first of its kind this year and is expected to be held again around the end of the year.
Earlier, Ahn Gyu-baek, the Minister of National Defense nominee, mentioned in a response document submitted to the office of People Power Party lawmaker Kangsik that he understood the Eastern Sea Territorial Protection Drill is a regular drill held twice a year and that it would be conducted this year on a scale similar to previous years.
The Japanese government also protested against this drill. Masaki Kanai, Director-General of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, lodged a complaint with Kim Jang-hyun, Minister-Counselor of the South Korean Embassy in Japan, while Daisuke Mibae, the Deputy Chief of the Japanese Embassy in South Korea, made a complaint to Kim Sang-hoon, Director-General of the Pacific Affairs Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.