An annual ceremony was held in Japan on Monday to push the country's claim to a group of islets in the Sea of Japan controlled by South Korea, but on a scaled-down basis due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The ceremony in Matsue has been held every Feb. 22 since 2006 after the Shimane Prefectural Government designated the day as Takeshima Day in 2005, a century after a Cabinet decision was issued placing them under the prefecture's jurisdiction.
The islets, called Dokdo in South Korea, cover a total land area of 0.2 square kilometer and lies northwest of Shimane Prefecture's coast. They consist of volcanic rock with little vegetation or drinking water, but they are located in rich fishing grounds.