ROK ruling party lawmakers visit disputed islets

SEOUL - Senior officials of the Republic of Korea's ruling Saenuri Party on Thursday visited a set of disputed islets lying between the Republic of Korea and Japan, a subject of recurring territorial disputes.

Saenuri head Hwang Woo-yea, floor leader Lee Hahn-koo and five other officials took a tour of the rocky East Sea islets and met with coast guards stationed there.

The trip to the sparsely inhabited islets, known as Dokdo here and Takeshima in Japan, is seen as an attempt by the conservative ruling party to underscore its commitment to national defense before the presidential election in December.

The tour also coincided with the party's efforts to ostracize two left-leaning lawmakers under fire for sympathizing with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the Republic of Korea's former wartime rival.

Right-wing politicians here often describe their liberal and progressive rivals as foreign policy doves, which observers say gives them a political edge whenever territorial disputes resurface.