A Japanese military attache visited South Korea's defense ministry on Thursday to discuss the agenda for annual trilateral security talks among Seoul, Washington and Tokyo slated for next month, a ministry official said.

Toru Nakashima of the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force visited the ministry compound in Seoul to prepare for the planned Defense Trilateral Talks, a working-level meeting set to be held in Seoul. The exact date for the DTT has yet to be officially announced.

The first visit to the ministry by a Japanese defense official in three months sparked speculation that the two sides might also discuss ways to improve bilateral ties strained earlier this year due to Tokyo's claim that a South Korean warship locked fire-control radar on its patrol aircraft in December.

Following the military spat, a senior South Korean Navy official canceled his plan to visit Japan. Tokyo has also decided not to send its warships to a South Korea-based portion of a multinational maritime exercise slated to begin late this month. (Yonhap)