President Yoon expresses condolences to victims of Japanese quake

President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, speaks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at a forum at Stanford University in California on Nov. 17, 2023. The event was organized on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders' meeting. [YONHAP]

President Yoon Suk Yeol shared his condolences to the victims of the recent earthquake in Japan in a letter to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Tuesday.

In the letter, Yoon conveyed his condolences to the earthquake victims and their bereaved families and expressed his wish to assist with the ongoing reconstruction efforts in Japan, according to the presidential office in Seoul.

A 7.6-degree quake struck Japan’s Ishikawa Prefecture on Monday, reportedly killing at least 30 and injuring another 80 people. Over 100 aftershocks reportedly followed.

The quake was the strongest to hit Japan since the 9.0-degree earthquake hit northeastern Japan in 2011, which was followed by massive tsunami waves that killed around 18,500 people.

A tsunami warning issued by the Japan Meteorological Agency on Monday was downgraded to an advisory on Tuesday.

However, the warning sparked another controversy among some experts in Korea after a map released by the Japanese weather agency designated Dokdo islets — called Takeshima in Japan — as Japanese territory.

The Foreign Ministry in Seoul protested the weather agency’s post.

“The Korean government has sternly protested to Japan through diplomatic channels and requested corrective action,” Lim Soo-suk, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry, told the press on Tuesday. “Dokdo is clearly Korea's unique territory historically, geographically, and under international law, and there is no territorial dispute over Dokdo. We plan to respond firmly and severely to any unfair claims made by Japan regarding Dokdo.”

BY ESTHER CHUNG [chung.juhee@joongang.co.kr]