Russia’s Far Eastern Kuril Islands visit by President Vladimir Putin stirred a fresh diplomatic battle with Japan over the title of the territory.
The Kremlin reported the visit by Putin on Iturup on Wednesday, the Russian president’s first trip to the region, visiting a fish-processing plant on the island.
The translation of the visit in the context of already tense ties between Moscow and Tokyo, which have been impacted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The dispute between Russia and Japan dates back more than 40 years, looking at the most southerly islands of the Kuril chain.
The Kuril Islands lie between Hokkaido, Japan and Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Habomai Islands are the four islands at the heart of a dispute.
The islands were later annexed by the Soviet Union after its annexation of the Kurils at the end of World War II and for many years afterwards, the Japanese residents of the islands were deported from the Soviet Union. The Japanese call the four disputed islands the Northern Territories and still claim them. But the Russians still rule over the islands.
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi strongly protested Putin’s visit, repeating Tokyo’s stance whereby Japan has historically and legally the right to own the Northern Territories.
The territorial dispute has been another blockage in the development of bilateral relations between Russia and Japan, as the two powers have not signed a peace treaty after World War II.
Putin’s arrival is welcome given that the Russian President personally had made the commitment to visit the disputed islands in 2024. His visit to Iturup has now added to the bitter territorial dispute between Moscow and Tokyo, which dates back to the middle of the 19th century.