By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

The government plans to launch a task force to help reinforce its sovereignty over Dokdo in the East Sea in a bid to dispel any possible attempt by Japan to lay claim to the islets, an official said Thursday.

The decision was made during a policy coordination meeting between government departments presided over by Prime Minister Han Seung-soo.

The task force will involve representatives from related ministries, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Ministry of National Defense, and the Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, the official said.

The group will take charge of various measures to protect Dokdo, the rocky islets that have been at the center of diplomatic tension between Seoul and Tokyo.

In addition to the establishment of the task force, the government decided to beef up the security by expanding annual military drills and deploying more patrol ships near Dokdo, said the official.

``To prepare for a possible armed clash near Dokdo, the government will expand the `Dokdo protection exercise' as well as dispatch more patrol ships near the islets,'' the official said.

South Korea has conducted military drills aimed at enhancing the security of Dokdo twice a year since 2005. The first exercise for this year is to take place later this month, while the other is scheduled for November, Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee told the National Assembly earlier this week.

This year, South Korea's new F-15K fleet is expected to participate in the drill, according to military sources.

Other agreed measures during the policy consultation meeting include construction of an oceanic scientific base beginning 2009, increasing shelters for fishermen and building a breakwater on Dokdo, part of efforts to make the islets habitable for both permanent residents and visitors.

The government will also set up the state-funded Dokdo Research Institute that will take charge of research or studies on the islets in the future to promote South Korea's sovereignty from a standpoint of history and international law.

The government plans to build museums on Dokdo in Seoul to help educate students about South Korea's sovereignty.

Japan has repeatedly attempted to lay claim to Dokdo by distorting history. Earlier this month, Tokyo announced that its education ministry would publish teaching manuals in which the islets are referred to as Japan's territory.

In a major policy turnaround, in response, South Korea has taken hard-line steps. It rejected a Japanese proposal to hold bilateral talks at an Asian security forum in Singapore this week. Seoul also recalled its ambassador from Tokyo.

Seoul has stationed a 50-strong police contingent on Dokdo since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr