The Kremlin has denounced a claim made by Japanese Prime Minister (PM) Fumio Kishida that Japan’s sovereignty extends to a chain of disputed islands claimed by Moscow and Tokyo.
Addressing the Diet on Tuesday, PM Kishida reiterated Japan’s claim to the four islands, which are recognised by Tokyo as the Northern Territories and by Russia as the Kuril archipelago.
“Our country’s sovereignty covers the Northern Territories,” he said.
The remark was firmly dismissed by Kremlin on Tuesday. “We do not agree with such a statement...This is Russian territory, and Russia has repeatedly reaffirmed its political will on different levels to continue dialogue with Japan to find solutions to the sensitive issues that remain on the agenda,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call.
The archipelago is among one of the international community’s oldest unresolved territorial disputes; it has caused friction in Russia and Japan’s bilateral relations and has prevented the two from signing a peace treaty.
In this regard, Kishida said that both sides must “solve this issue and not leave it to future generations.” “The government intends to sign a peace treaty with Russia, resolving the issue of these islands’ sovereignty,” the new PM said.
The islands are strategically important to Japan, but this has not stopped Russian activity in the region. Russian PM Mikhail Mishustin visited the islands in July and said that Russia was considering establishing a special economic zone there, wherein businesses and investors would be exempt from paying most taxes and customs duties.
Meanwhile, the Russian military has also been continuously building up a battery of military defences on the island, including the short-range Tor M2 anti-shipping missile systems and fighter jets and advanced air defence missiles on the Iturup island, which is part of the four islands of the Southern Kuril archipelago.
The contentious islands are also known to be rich in hot springs, minerals, and rare metals such as rhenium, which is used in the manufacturing of supersonic aircraft.
The disputed region was seized by the Soviet forces towards the end of World War II following Japan’s surrender to the Allied Forces, at which point it was referred to as Staten Island, but is now claimed by Japan as part of its Northern Territories. The disputed territories also include three other islands—Kunashir (or Kunashiri), Shikotan, and the islet group of Habomai, which are located off the coast of Japan’s Hokkaido island and stretch to the far east of Russia.
Former Japanese PM Shinzo Abe spent a significant amount of energy during his time in office on resolving the issue with Russia but these talks failed. International experts now believe that there is a very slim chance now that Moscow will simply hand over the territories to Tokyo.