(MENAFN) South Korea’s Navy has indefinitely delayed a planned joint search and rescue exercise with Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force that was set for late November, according to reports citing government sources from both countries.

The postponement followed Japan’s cancellation of a plan earlier this month to allow South Korean military jets to refuel at an Okinawa base, reportedly after authorities learned the aircraft had recently flown near disputed islets in the Sea of Japan.

The drills, which were held ten times between 1999 and 2017, were previously suspended following a military disagreement over Japanese patrol aircraft in December 2018. Resuming the joint exercises had been viewed as a sign of strengthened bilateral cooperation, as stated by a senior Defense Ministry official.

The islets at the center of the dispute—referred to as Takeshima in Japan and Dokdo in South Korea—are controlled by South Korea but claimed by Japan. These remote islets are located in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan.

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