Island of Discord Between Russia & Japan

At their bilateral meeting in L’Aquila, Italy, on the sidelines of the Group of Eight summit earlier this month, President Dmitry Medvedev and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso exchanged views on the dispute that has darkened bilateral relations since 1945 — the Kuril Islands. Both leaders have once again “agreed to disagree” over this thorny issue that prevented Moscow and Tokyo from normalizing their political relationships in full and signing a peace treaty, which does not exist to this day.

“Japan cannot be satisfied with this situation,” Aso said. “Unless Russia takes practical steps to sign a peace treaty, we will be unable to develop partner relations with it in the Asia-Pacific region.” He insisted that Moscow should return to Japan the so-called Northern Territories, which is the Japanese political name for the South Kuril Islands that it took after defeating the Russian Empire during the 1904-1905 war in the Far East. The head of the Japanese government has also threatened to halt the implementation of multibillion-dollar contracts with Russia if the islands aren’t returned.

On June 11, the lower house of Japan’s parliament adopted amendments to the 1982 law on special measures to facilitate a solution of the “Northern Territories” issue, with the upper house approving it July 3. According to this law, the four South Kuril Islands were called “indigenous Japanese territory” and therefore should be given back to Japan.

Russia responded to the amendments with strongly worded statements by Medvedev and members of the State Duma, Federation Council and Foreign Ministry. The Federation Council, for example, labeled the Japanese parliamentary initiative as “the most unfriendly gesture, which  is insulting to the Russian people.” The senators asked Medvedev to impose a moratorium on the visa-free regime existing between the two countries.

The Foreign Ministry said the Japanese move produced a sharply negative reaction in Russian society and called Japan’s territorial claims “inadmissible” and “unacceptable.”