Tokyo and Moscow have never reached a formal settlement at the end of World War II
The lack of a peace treaty to this day between Tokyo and Moscow to end World War II is “really vexing and regrettable,” Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has said, reiterating her intent to resolve territorial issues with Russia.
Japan and Russia never signed a peace treaty after the war, remaining locked for decades in a territorial dispute over the four southernmost islands of the Kuril archipelago.
The islands were incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1945, and Russia regards them as an integral part of its territory, while Tokyo continues to lay claim to what it calls the “Northern Territories.”
Takaichi delivered the remarks on Saturday at a rally marking the so-called Northern Territories Day, an annual commemoration designed to spread awareness of Tokyo’s stance on the Kuril Islands dispute.
“It is really vexing and regrettable that a peace treaty between Japan and Russia has not been concluded and that the Northern Territories issue has not been resolved although 80 years have passed since the war ended,” Takaichi stated. The prime minister added that she views the restart of a program to facilitate visits of former Japanese residents of the islands and their relatives as “one of the top priorities in the Japan-Russia relationship.”
The already complicated relations between Tokyo and Moscow further deteriorated in light of the Ukraine conflict, when Japan aligned itself with the West, imposing sanctions on Russia. In response to Japan’s “clearly unfriendly position,” Russia in 2022 withdrew from peace talks, as well as canceled visa-free travel from Japanese to the disputed islands.
After Takaichi assumed the prime minister post last October, she repeatedly signaled her intent to reach a formal peace settlement with Russia and “to resolve the territorial issue.” While Moscow has welcomed the proclaimed goal, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said late last year that Tokyo had been displaying a “rather unfriendly stance” towards Moscow and has taken part in “all the unlawful sanctions and restrictions against our country” imposed by the West. Dialogue between the two nations has been “reduced virtually to zero” in recent years due to Japan’s actions, Peskov pointed out at the time.
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