Why Putin’s first Kuril Islands visit matters as Russia-Japan ties hit new low

File
photo:
Russia
P eside t
Vladimi
Puti
watches
a
milita y
exe cise
f om
the
boa d
of
the
Va yag
missile
c uise
of
the
Pacific
Fleet
ea
Yuzh o-Sakhali sk,
o
Sakhali
Isla d,
Russia

Russia
P eside t
Vladimi
Puti
has
visited
the
disputed
Ku il
Isla ds
fo
the
fi st
time,
t avelli g
to
Itu up
as
Moscow’s
elatio s
with
Japa
emai
deeply
st ai ed
ove
Russia’s
wa
i
Uk ai e.The
visit,
epo ted
by
Russia
state
media
o
Thu sday,
comes
afte
Puti
ove saw
milita y
exe cises
i volvi g
Russia’s
Pacific
Fleet
i
the
cou t y’s
Fa
East.It
also
comes
a
day
afte
No th
Ko ea,
a
close
Russia
ally,
fi ed
a
ballistic
missile
towa ds
wate s
off
the
Ko ea
Pe i sula.Puti ‘s
t ip
to
Itu up
is
sig ifica t
because
the
isla d
is
amo g
fou
southe
Ku il
Isla ds
that
Japa
claims
as
its
ow
te ito y
a d
calls
the
No the
Te ito ies.

Puti
visits
Itu up,
i spects
local
i dust y

Acco di g
to
Reute s,
Puti
visited
the
Yas y
fish-p ocessi g
pla t
o
Itu up
a d
was
show
local
fishi g
ope atio s.
Russia
televisio
footage
showed
him
exami i g
la ge
tu a
a d
halibut
a d
sampli g
fish
oe.

The
Russia
p eside t
also
i te acted
with
eside ts.”What
lovely
weathe
you
have
the e,
just
like
a
eso t!”
Puti
told
a
g oup
of
locals.The
visit
followed
Puti ‘s
i spectio
of
the
Pacific
Fleet’s
flagship
missile
c uise
Va yag
du i g
milita y
exe cises
i
Russia’s
Fa
East.

Russia
state
ews
age cy
TASS
desc ibed
the
Itu up
t ip
as
Puti ‘s
fi st
pe so al
visit
to
the
Ku il
isla d
chai .

Puti
had
p eviously
visited
Sakhali
but
had
ot
pe so ally
t avelled
to
the
disputed
isla ds.

Why
the
Ku il
Isla ds
a e
disputed

The
dispute
dates
back
to
the
fi al
days
of
Wo ld
Wa
II,
whe
Soviet
fo ces
seized
the
Ku il
Isla ds
afte
the
Soviet
U io
decla ed
wa
o
Japa
i
August
1945.The
fou
isla ds
at
the
ce t e
of
the
dispute
a e
Itu up,
Ku ashi ,
Shikota
a d
the
Habomai
islets.
Japa
efe s
to
them
as
Eto ofu,
Ku ashi i,
Shikota
a d
the
Habomai
Isla ds
a d
mai tai s
that
they
a e
Japa ese
te ito y.The
Soviet
U io
etai ed
co t ol
of
the
isla ds
afte
the
wa ,
a d
Russia
has
mai tai ed
a
milita y
p ese ce
the e.The
isla ds
a e
st ategically
impo ta t
because
of
thei
locatio
betwee
the
Russia
Fa
East
a d
o the
Japa .
They
also
have
ich
fishi g
g ou ds
a d
deposits
of
mi e als,
i cludi g
gold
a d
silve .A ou d
20,000
people
cu e tly
live
o
the
isla ds
u de
Russia
admi ist atio ,
while
Japa
says
its
fo me
eside ts
we e
displaced
followi g
the
Soviet
takeove .
A ou d
17,000
Japa ese
eside ts
we e
depo ted
afte
the
isla ds
we e
occupied
i
1945.

Japa
p otests
Puti ‘s
visit

Puti ‘s
visit
has
d aw
a
st o g
eactio
f om
Tokyo.Japa ese
fo eig
mi iste
Toshimitsu
Motegi
p otested
the
visit,
eite ati g
Japa ‘s
claim
ove
the
isla ds.”The
o the
te ito ies,
i cludi g
Eto ofu,
a e
Japa ‘s
i he e t
te ito y
both
histo ically
a d
based
o
i te atio al
law,”
Motegi
said,
acco di g
to
Reute s.”Japa
st o gly
p otests
this
visit.”The
te ito ial
dispute
has
p eve ted
Russia
a d
Japa
f om
sig i g
a
fo mal
peace
t eaty
fo mally
e di g
thei
Wo ld
Wa
II
co flict.The e
have
bee
seve al
attempts
to
esolve
the
dispute
ove
the
decades.
I
1956,
Soviet
leade
Nikita
Kh ushchev
suggested
that
two
of
the
disputed
isla ds
could
be
etu ed
to
Japa
as
pa t
of
a
peace
settleme t,
although
o
fi al
ag eeme t
followed.Negotiatio s
esumed
afte
the
collapse
of
the
Soviet
U io ,
but
the
te ito ial
dispute
emai ed
u esolved.

Uk ai e
wa
deepe s
Russia-Japa
te sio s

The
lo g- u i g
dispute
has
become
mo e
difficult
to
esolve
si ce
Russia
lau ched
its
full-scale
i vasio
of
Uk ai e
i
Feb ua y
2022.Japa
joi ed
Weste
cou t ies
i
imposi g
sa ctio s
o
Moscow
a d
has
st o gly
suppo ted
Uk ai e.
I
espo se,
Russia
suspe ded
peace
t eaty
egotiatio s
with
Japa
a d
halted
seve al
fo ms
of
eco omic
coope atio
elati g
to
the
disputed
isla ds.Moscow
has
also
accused
Tokyo
of
adopti g
a
i c easi gly
hostile
positio
towa ds
Russia.Puti
used
his
add ess
to
Pacific
Fleet
pe so el
o
Wed esday
to
c iticise
Japa ‘s
sa ctio s
a d
its
co ti ui g
te ito ial
claims.
He
said
Russia
had
p eviously
mai tai ed
co st uctive
elatio s
with
Tokyo
ove
the
issue
du i g
the
admi ist atio
of
fo me
Japa ese
P ime
Mi iste
Shi zo
Abe,
but
claimed
Japa
had
si ce
cha ged
its
positio .He
oted
that
Japa ‘s
cu e t
te ito ial
claims
came
despite
what
he
desc ibed
as
the
post-Wo ld
Wa
II
te ito ial
a a geme ts
bei g
eflected
i
i te atio al
docume ts.Puti
also
ecalled
the
1956
Soviet-Japa ese
decla atio ,
which
esto ed
diplomatic
elatio s
a d
ope ed
the
way
towa ds
a
possible
peace
t eaty
a d
a
settleme t
of
the
isla d
dispute.
He
claimed
that
Tokyo
late
efused
to
abide
by
the
decla atio .Russia
has
i c easi gly
st e gthe ed
its
milita y
p ese ce
a d
activities
i
its
Fa
Easte
te ito ies
as
te sio s
with
Japa
have
ise .

Visit
comes
amid
wide
milita y
te sio s
i
the
egio

Puti ‘s
Ku il
Isla ds
t ip
also
comes
agai st
a
backd op
of
i c eased
milita y
activity
i
the
Asia-Pacific
egio .The
Russia
p eside t
had
t avelled
to
the
Fa
East
to
ove see
the
fi al
stage
of
la ge-scale
Pacific
Fleet
exe cises,
which
bega
o
August
4.Puti
said
the
exe cises
we e
ecessa y
to
mai tai
milita y
eadi ess
a d
p otect
Russia’s
i te ests
a d
secu ity
i
the
Asia-Pacific
egio .
He
also
accused
NATO
of
seeki g
to
i c ease
its
p ese ce
i
the
egio .Puti
wa ed
of
isi g
co flict
pote tial
i
the
Asia-Pacific
a d
A ctic
egio s,
while
c iticisi g
what
he
desc ibed
as
pla s
to
deploy
ew
weapo s
systems
i
the
egio .The
timi g
was
otable
because
No th
Ko ea
fi ed
a
ballistic
missile
o
Wed esday,
just
days
befo e
majo
South
Ko ea-US
milita y
exe cises
a e
scheduled
to
begi .
Moscow
a d
Pyo gya g
have
sig ifica tly
deepe ed
thei
milita y
pa t e ship
i
ece t
yea s.

Uk ai e
battlefield
developme ts
add
to
egio al
backd op

Puti ‘s
visit
comes
as
Russia’s
wa
i
Uk ai e
co ti ues
with
fighti g
a d
lo g- a ge
st ikes
i te sifyi g.Uk ai ia
P eside t
Volodymy
Zele skyy
said
Uk ai ia
fo ces
had
ecaptu ed
about
745
sq
km
of
te ito y
this
yea
ac oss
pa ts
of
the
southeaste
f o t,
i cludi g
26
settleme ts
i
the
D ip opet ovsk,
Do etsk
a d
Zapo izhzhia
egio s.
Howeve ,
these
battlefield
claims
have
ot
bee
i depe de tly
ve ified.Uk ai e
has
also
stepped
up
attacks
deep
i side
Russia
te ito y,
i cludi g
a
majo
ece t
st ike
o
Novo ossiysk,
a
key
Black
Sea
po t
a d
g ai -expo t
hub.The
attack
epo tedly
damaged
po t
i f ast uctu e
a d
dis upted
ope atio s
at
majo
g ai
te mi als.Russia
is
the
wo ld’s
la gest
wheat
expo te ,
maki g
Novo ossiysk
st ategically
impo ta t
ot
o ly
fo
Moscow
but
also
fo
global
ag icultu al
ma kets.At
the
same
time,
Russia
has
co ti ued
missile
a d
d o e
st ikes
agai st
Uk ai ia
cities
a d
i f ast uctu e.

No
b eakth ough
i
decades-old
te ito ial
dispute

Fo
Japa ,
Puti ‘s
visit
is
likely
to
fu the
complicate
al eady
st ai ed
elatio s
with
Moscow.The
Ku il
Isla ds
emai
o e
of
the
most
e du i g
te ito ial
disputes
left
ove
f om
Wo ld
Wa
II.While
the e
have
bee
pe iods
of
diplomatic
e gageme t
a d
eco omic
coope atio ,
eithe
side
has
bee
able
to
ag ee
o
a
fi al
settleme t.With
Russia’s
wa
i
Uk ai e
havi g
pushed
Moscow
a d
Tokyo
fu the
apa t,
Puti ‘s
fi st
pe so al
visit
to
the
disputed
isla ds
se ds
a
st o g
political
sig al
that
Russia
has
o
immediate
i te tio
of
softe i g
its
positio
ove
te ito y
it
has
co t olled
si ce
1945.

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