South Korea Says It Will Recall Ambassador From Japan

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea said yesterday it will recall its ambassador from Japan over rekindled claims to disputed islands between the countries, as the new Seoul government seeks to lift its sagging popularity at home with an appeal to nationalism.

Japan announced its intention yesterday to recommend in a government teaching manual that students learn about Tokyo's claims to the nearly uninhabitable islets, known as Dokdo in Korean and Takeshima in Japanese, that are under South Korean control. The dispute has been a long-standing thorn in relations between the Asian neighbors.

"Many people here are of the opinion that we should fully teach the facts about Takeshima and deepen understanding of Japan's land and territory," Japan's chief Cabinet secretary, Nobutaka Machimura, told reporters in Tokyo, adding that Seoul was informed of its plan.

"We would like to avoid a situation where Japan-South Korean relations are gravely affected by each and every issue that comes up," he said. "We both should handle such a matter calmly."

President Lee of South Korea expressed "his deep disappointment and regret" over the renewed claim, according to a spokesman, Lee Dong-kwan.

"We cannot accept it, [we] strongly protest against the Japanese government and request immediate corrective measures," a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Moon Tae-young, told reporters.

The ministry also said it planned to bring home its ambassador to Tokyo for an unspecified amount of time after he launches a strong protest with Japan's Foreign Ministry. Japan's ambassador to Seoul was also summoned later yesterday by the South's ministry to receive a formal complaint.

After taking office in February, the conservative Mr. Lee — who was born in Japan during Tokyo's colonial occupation of the Korean peninsula — had sought to restore strained ties between the two countries. In April, he held the first full-fledged summit between South Korea and Japan in three years.

Mr. Lee has seen his popularity plummet and faced weeks of anti-government protests sparked by health concerns about restored imports of American beef, forcing him to negotiate changes to a deal with Washington.

In the past, South Korean leaders have used anti-Japanese sentiment to appeal to Koreans' strongly felt nationalism as a way to boost their standing. Many Koreans harbor resentment against Japan for its 1910-45 colonial rule.