South Korea's ambassador to Japan returned to Seoul on Tuesday in a move to protest Japan's approval last week of a history textbook that many Asian nations say brushes over descriptions of Japan's wartime atrocities.
Ambassador Choi Sang Yong caught an afternoon flight for what Seoul officials described Monday as "talks on how to respond to the coming release of the controversial history textbook."
Government officials in Tokyo tried to play down the move Tuesday, saying they were confident Choi would return to Japan after fully briefing the South Korean side on events leading up to the approval of the text and the Japanese government's position on the issue.