The number of Japanese citizens who registered Dokdo as their legal domicile reached 112 as of the end of 2025, a 4.3-fold increase from the 26 first disclosed by the Japanese government in 2005.
According to the Yomiuri Shimbun on the 23rd, the number of Japanese citizens with registered domiciles in Takeshima—Japan's unilateral name for Dokdo—has remained between 112 and 124 in recent years. The year-end figures were 124 in 2021, 121 in 2022, 119 in 2023, and 122 in 2024. Under Japanese family registration law, citizens can transfer their legal domicile to any location Japan claims as its territory, regardless of actual residence.
Meanwhile, the Japanese government and Shimane Prefecture reiterated territorial claims over Dokdo at a "Takeshima Day" event held the previous day. Naoki Furukawa, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of the Cabinet Office—a vice-ministerial level official—asserted at an event in Matsue City, Shimane Prefecture, that Dokdo is "clearly Japan's inherent territory both historically and under international law." He added that South Korea's control constitutes "illegal occupation with no basis in international law and is absolutely unacceptable."
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had mentioned the possibility of dispatching a cabinet-level official during last year's Liberal Democratic Party presidential election. However, considering the trend toward improving Korea-Japan relations, the government again sent a parliamentary vice-minister following established practice. Shimane Governor Tatsuya Maruyama also claimed that South Korea has illegally occupied Dokdo for more than 70 years, demanding the Japanese government establish a related research institute. The conservative Sankei Shimbun continued its unfounded claims calling for Dokdo's return in an editorial the same day.
South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement immediately after the event, stating that "Dokdo is clearly our inherent territory historically, geographically, and under international law," and urged the immediate abolition of the event. The ministry summoned Hirotaka Matsuo, Minister for Political Affairs at the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, to lodge a formal protest.
The Japanese government forcibly incorporated Dokdo into Shimane Prefecture in January 1905. Shimane Prefecture announced this on February 22 of that year, later designating the date as Takeshima Day in 2005 and holding commemorative ceremonies since 2006. Ahead of this year's event, controversy arose over the limited sale of so-called "Takeshima Curry," featuring rice shaped like Dokdo's East and West islets with a "竹島" (Takeshima) flag planted on top.