When the Japanese talked nonsense about the Dokdo islets in the past, the Japanese ambassador normally restrained himself in consideration of the Korea-Japan relationship. But Ambassador Takano rushed in where angels fear to tread, provoking Korean ire at the very heart of the country's capital.

The government has thus far taken the position that, because we de facto occupy the islets, it is best to maintain calm in dealing with the issue. The logic is that any escalating diplomatic conflict over the islets would be playing into Japan's hands: it wants to draw international attention to the matter after all. Hence the government has tended not to engage with Japanese offensives over Dokdo, and the Foreign Ministry has advised officials to refrain from visiting the islets.

But Japan's recent moves are too extraordinary for us to carry on looking the other way. An organization from the extreme Japanese right last year threatened to occupy the islets. It suggests coat-trailing: anything will do that can bring the islets to international attention as a conflict area, even if it infuriates the Korean people.

In the past, Dokdo conflicts have been settled through the invisible mediation of the United States, which valued above all a triangular security axis among the three countries. But now that the Korea-U.S. relationship is cooling off and Tokyo-Washington ties are closer than ever, Japanese provocations are intensifying.

The more forces in Japan believe that the East Asian diplomatic landscape is moving in their favor, the more flagrant Japanese provocations over the islets will become. If that happens, what is the government going to do about it?