AP —
Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first visit to the Kuril Islands on Thursday. The Kuril Islands are a Pacific archipelago administered by Moscow and also claimed by Japan, which issued a diplomatic protest against the visit.
Putin visited a fish factory, hospital and school in Iturp, one of the southern islands of the volcanic archipelago. He also spoke briefly with local residents and met with Valery Limarenko, the governor of Russia’s Sakhalin Oblast.
Japan claims sovereignty over the four southernmost islands of the archipelago, known as the Northern Territories. The Soviet Union took them from Japan at the end of World War II, but the conflict prevented the two countries from signing a peace treaty formally ending hostilities.
Decades of diplomatic efforts to negotiate a settlement have yielded no tangible results. For years, the Russian government has increased its military presence in the Kuril Islands, in a move that appears to emphasize its firm stance in the conflict.
Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said his country “strongly protests” President Putin’s visit to Iturp, which Japan calls Etorofu Island.
Mogi said in a statement, “The Northern Territories, including Etorofu Island, are Japan’s unique territory both historically and from the perspective of international law.”
The minister later told reporters that he had summoned Russian Ambassador Nikolai Nozdrev to the Foreign Ministry in Tokyo to strongly protest the visit and ask him to “immediately report the message to Moscow.”
Late on Thursday, the Russian embassy in Japan called Tokyo’s protests “groundless” and said Nozdrev had explained that “the Southern Kuril Islands are an integral part of the Russian Federation, and after World War II they became part of the Russian Federation on legitimate international grounds.”
Putin’s visit “is a sovereign decision of the Russian leadership and is not subject to consultation with foreign countries,” the statement added.
Japan also protested when Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin visited Iturp in 2021.
President Putin has visited several regions in Siberia and the Far East in recent days. Before coming to Iturp, he stopped on Sakhalin Island to participate in the final part of training by the Russian Pacific Fleet.
In a speech on Wednesday aboard a warship participating in naval exercises, President Putin said the current situation in the Kuril Islands was “engraved in international documents as a reality that arose as a result of World War II.”
“However, here too Russia was prepared to seek a solution with the goal of concluding a peace treaty with Japan.”
Putin said that in the past Russia had “established constructive relations with many Japanese leaders, including former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who tragically passed away. He was instrumental in bringing closer relations between Japan and Russia and harmonizing the positions of our two countries.”
He added that constructive relations changed when Japan imposed sanctions on Russia in February 2022 after Russia sent troops to Ukraine and cited Russia as a “major threat source.”
Putin said Russia remains ready to “cooperate with all neighboring countries, including Japan and other countries of the region.”
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Putin’s visit was “incompatible with Japan’s position on the Northern Territories” and “absolutely unacceptable.”
He said the visit would be a further blow to relations between the two countries, which were already strained over the Ukraine issue, and that the Russian government should understand the consequences.
“I have to say that this visit has further hardened the Japanese public’s feelings toward Russia, making it even more difficult to restore bilateral relations in the medium to long term,” he said. “I hope that the Russian side fully understands the seriousness of this.”
One of the reasons Japan is focusing on maintaining relations with Russia is to allow former Japanese residents to return home and visit their graves as a humanitarian consideration.
Dmitry Medvedev, former president and prime minister of Russia and current vice-chairman of the Security Council, responded to Takaichi’s comments on X by saying, “This small talk won’t change anything.”
Medvedev, who himself has visited the Kuril Islands four times as president and prime minister, wrote that the Kuril Islands “have been, are and always will be Russian land.” “Those who fail to understand this will face the dire consequences of their delusions.”
