Russia's Putin angers Japan with 1st visit to Kuril Islands
Japan says it "strongly protests" Russian President Vladimir Putin's trip to the disputed Kuril Islands. Tensions over the Russian-controlled archipelago, claimed partly by Japan, have long dogged bilateral ties.
Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first visit to the Kuril Islands on Thursday, causing Japan to express strong displeasure. Japan has historically claimed sovereignty over four of the Kuril Islands, including the one visited by Putin, which were taken by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II. During his trip, Putin toured a fish-processing plant on Iturup, known as Etorofu in Japanese.
This island, along with three others, collectively referred to as the Northern Territories by Japan, was inhabited by about 17,000 Japanese people who were deported by the Soviet Union in 1945. The islands are now home to approximately 20,000 Russian citizens. The long-standing dispute over the islands prevented Moscow and Tokyo from signing a formal peace treaty after World War II.
Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi expressed deep dissatisfaction with Putin's visit, emphasizing that the Northern Territories are an integral part of Japan's territory both historically and under international law. This is the first time a Russian leader has visited the disputed territory since Dmitry Medvedev in 2010 and 2015.
The strategic significance of the Kuril Islands, which run from Russia's Kamchatka peninsula to Japan's northern island of Hokkaido, was highlighted during the Soviet Union's Cold War military presence in the region. Despite numerous talks since the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991, no progress has been made in resolving the territorial dispute.
Written by urgent.news from DW News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
