The South Korean military has omitted the phrase "sharing the values of liberal democracy and market economy" when referring to South Korea's relations with Japan in its biennial Defense White Paper.

The 2018 Defense White Paper released Tuesday instead said Seoul and Tokyo are "neighbors in terms of geography and culture and partners who need to cooperate for world peace and prosperity."

The revision is considered to reflect recently aggravated relations following the South Korean Supreme Court's ruling in favor of Korean victims of Japan's forced labor during World War Two. The two sides are also in a row over Japanese allegations that a South Korean warship recently locked its fire-control radar on a Japanese patrol plane. 

The description is in contrast to the previous 2016 paper, which said South Korea and Japan "share the values of liberal democracy and market economy and are neighboring countries that need to cooperate for peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia and the world."