Defense minister Shin Won-sik has issued a public apology over the reference to the Dokdo islets as possibly subject to territorial disputes in a military textbook.

At a meeting with local reporters on Thursday, the minister said he takes responsibility for making the final decision on the revised publication on basic mental fortitude education, adding that he will own up wherever necessary and apologize.

The textbook said regional powers surrounding the Korean Peninsula, including China, Russia and Japan, are in sharp conflict that may result in a military clash at any time amid ongoing disputes over the Senkaku Islands, Kuril Islands and Dokdo.

The phrase contradicts Seoul's basic stance that there is no territorial dispute over the South Korea-controlled islets, which Japan has made claims to.

Shin, who had accompanied President Yoon Suk Yeol during a visit to a frontline unit to review readiness on Thursday, said the president strongly chastised him before ordering an immediate correction.

The minister said he apologized to the president for failing to thoroughly review the content and ordered the vice defense minister to dispose of all 20-thousand distributed copies that have been collected and issue new ones after corrections are made.