Putin’s Kuril Islands Visit Sparks Fresh Territorial Row With Japan

Edited
by:
Wesley
Rah

The
fi st-eve
visit
by
Russia
P eside t
Vladimi
Puti
to
o e
of
the
disputed
Ku il
isla ds
off
the
fa
o the
tip
of
Japa
last
week
t igge ed
a
swift
a d
a g y
espo se
f om
Tokyo.

Japa
P ime
Mi iste
Sa ae
Takaichi
said
i
a
social
media
post
that
Puti ‘s
visit
was
“absolutely
u acceptable”
while
efe i g
to
the
isla ds,
which
it
calls
the
“No the
Te ito ies”
as
“i he e tly
Japa ese
te ito y.”

Russia’s
Fo eig
Mi ist y
said
i
espo se
that
the
isla ds
a e
a
“i teg al
pa t”
of
Russia.

The
Ku il
isla ds
we e
seized
by
Soviet
t oops
two
weeks
afte
Japa ‘s
official
su e de
e di g
Wo ld
Wa
II
o
August
15,
1945,
with
the
17,300
Japa ese
eside ts
fo ced
to
leave
ove
the
followi g
yea .

Puti
tou ed
a
school,
a
hospital
a d
i dust ial
facilities
o
the
isla d
of
Itu up,
which
Japa
efe s
to
as
Eto ofu.
The
visit
came
just
two
days
befo e
the
81st
a ive sa y
of
Japa ‘s
su e de
at
the
e d
of
Wo ld
Wa
II.

“This
was
clea ly
a
message
to
Japa ,”
said
James
B ow ,
a
p ofesso
of
i te atio al
elatio s
specializi g
i
Russia
affai s
at
the
Tokyo
campus
of
Temple
U ive sity.

“Russia
has
bee
a ge ed
by
Japa ‘s
suppo t
fo
Uk ai e
a d
fo
the
close
ties
that
Tokyo
has
bee
buildi g
with
Eu opea
membe s
of
NATO,”
he
told
DW.

“So
the e
is
a
clea
desi e
to
pu ish
Japa ,”
he
said.
“But
the e
is
also
a
domestic
eleme t
to
this
…
as
a
visit
like
this
ca
ge e ate
pat iotic
suppo t
amo g
Russia s
of
all
political
st ipes.”

Russia
a d
Japa ‘s
lo gsta di g
te ito ial
ow

Successive
Japa ese
gove me ts
have
co siste tly
take
the
positio
that
the
isla ds
we e
illegally
a exed,
with
the
dispute
so
impacti g
bilate al
ties
that
the
two
atio s
have
yet
to
sig
a
fo mal
peace
t eaty.

The
collapse
of
the
Soviet
U io
i
1991
a d
the
subseque t
eco omic
ha dships
gave
Japa
e ewed
hope
that
Moscow
could
be
co vi ced
to
etu
the
isla ds
i
etu
fo
eco omic
assista ce
o
eve
joi t
developme t
of
the
egio .

Fo me
Japa ese
P ime
Mi iste
Shi zo
Abe
was
a guably
the
most
p oactive
Japa ese
leade
o
the
issue,
meeti g
with
Puti
o
a
umbe
of
occasio s
i
a
effo t
to
co vi ce
the
Russia
leade
to
come
a ou d
to
Japa ‘s
way
of
thi ki g.

Howeve ,
all
of
these
diplomatic
effo ts
came
to
aught,
with
Russia
ame di g
its
co stitutio
i
2020
to
ba
the
cedi g
of
a y
pa t
of
Russia
te ito y
to
a
fo eig
powe .
Moscow’s
elatio s
with
Japa
fu the
dete io ated
afte
Russia’s
full-scale
i vasio
of
Uk ai e
i
Feb ua y
2022.

Toshimitsu
Shigemu a,
a
p ofesso
of
politics
at
Tokyo’s
Waseda
U ive sity,
told
DW
that
these
latest
developme ts
a e
just
a othe
ail
i
the
coffi
fo
Japa ‘s
ambitio
co ce i g
the
isla ds.

“Tokyo
has
al eady
summo ed
the
Russia
ambassado
a d
made
a
fo mal
diplomatic
p otest,
but
sa ctio s
a e
al eady
i
place
ove
the
Uk ai e
wa
a d
I
thi k
it
will
be
difficult
fo
Japa
to
add
mo e,”
Shigemu a
said.

“Japa
is
impo ti g
Russia
e e gy
a d,
because
of
the
situatio
with
I a ,
that
has
become
eve
mo e
impo ta t,
which
leaves
Tokyo
i
a
elatively
weak
positio ,”
he
added.

Puti
tests
Japa

Shigemu a
believes
that
Puti
—
pote tially
i

co so t
with
Chi a
a d
No th
Ko ea
—
is
attempti g
to
weake
Japa ese
P ime
Mi iste
Takaichi
because
of
the
fi m
li e
she
has
take
o
secu ity
issues
i
the
egio .
He
added
that
Puti
is
awa e
that
Takaichi’s
domestic
poll
umbe s
a e
softe i g,
a d
likely
assesses
the
Japa ese
leade
will
ot
espo d
mo e
fo cefully
tha
a
p otest.

Shigemu a
added
that
Russia’s
evised
co stitutio
a d
deepe i g
atio alist
se time t
e cou aged
by
state
p opaga da
effectively
makes
it
“impossible”
fo
the
isla ds
to
be
etu ed
to
Japa ese
co t ol.

“Puti
may
be
weak
ow,
but
he
is
coope ati g
with
Chi a
a d
No th
Ko ea
to
challe ge
Takaichi,
who
has
few
optio s,”
he
said.
“A d
eve
afte
Puti
has
go e,
the e
will
be
o
i te est
i
a
ew
Russia
gove me t
to
etu
the
isla ds.”

B ow
ag eed,
sayi g
that
while
a
few
“excitable
comme tato s”
i
Japa
will
see
Puti ‘s
eve tual
depa tu e
f om
the
K emli
as
a
oppo tu ity,
whomeve
e ds
up
co t olli g
Russia
will
be
u likely
to
alig
with
Japa ‘s
te ito ial
i te ests.

“It
did
ot
happe
with
the
collapse
of
the
Soviet
U io
a d
all
th ough
Russia’s
subseque t
eco omic
difficulties
so
I
do ‘t
see
a y
ew
Russia
leade
who
comes
i
as
cou te a ci g
etu i g
the
isla ds,”
he
said.

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