The dispute over the Kuril Islands between Russia and Japan has turned into a new diplomatic tension following Vladimir Putin’s visit to Iturup Island. Russia’s Foreign Ministry summoned Japan’s ambassador to Moscow, Akira Moto, for a meeting.
Moto went to the Foreign Ministry building in Moscow at the direction of the Japanese government. The ambassador stayed inside for about 20 minutes but did not answer reporters’ questions as he left.
Background to the Kuril Islands dispute
Putin visited Iturup Island in the Kuril Islands last Thursday. Known as Etorofu in Japan, the island was the site of the first visit to the archipelago by a Russian head of state since Dmitry Medvedev’s visit in 2010.
Tokyo maintains that the four islands at the southern end of the Kuril chain, north of Hokkaido, were unlawfully seized by the Soviet Union after the end of World War II. The dispute over the status of the island group has prevented Russia and Japan from signing a formal peace treaty ending World War II.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described Putin’s visit as “absolutely unacceptable” and summoned Russia’s ambassador to Tokyo.
Moscow’s response to the protest
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Japan’s protest had crossed “the bounds of decency” and called for Akira Moto to be summoned to the ministry.
After Moto did not immediately respond to the summons, Lavrov said on Monday that they had received conflicting information suggesting that the ambassador was either not in Moscow or had fallen ill. The minister also expressed his displeasure over the situation.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moto’s health had “suddenly begun to improve” and announced that the ambassador would attend the meeting on Tuesday.
Deteriorating relations
Relations between Tokyo and Moscow have steadily deteriorated since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Japan, together with its G7 partners, has imposed sanctions on Moscow and provided Ukraine with financial assistance as well as limited military support.
