Russian President Vladimir Putin [Getty Images]
Russian President Vladimir Putin [Getty Images]

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Kuril Islands — disputed with Japan — for the first time since taking power, reaffirming Russia's effective control over a chain that Japan calls its "Northern Territories."

According to Russia's state-run Tass news agency and AFP, Putin, who is on a tour of Siberia and the Russian Far East, visited the Kuril Islands on Thursday local time, inspecting the flagship of Russia's Pacific Fleet and receiving a briefing on military exercises.

Putin then held a working meeting with Sakhalin Region Governor Valery Limarenko and visited local seafood processing facilities, a hospital and a school.

It was Putin's first visit to the Kuril Islands since he first took the presidency in 2000 — a span of 26 years.

Dmitry Medvedev, Putin's close ally and former president who now serves as deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, became the first Russian leader to visit the Kuril Islands in 2010 while serving as president. Japan's government protested strongly at the time, but Putin had not visited the islands himself until now.

The visit comes amid a sharp deterioration in Russia-Japan relations following the war in Ukraine.

On Wednesday, Putin visited Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk in the Russian Far East, close to Japan, and publicly criticized Tokyo's policy toward Russia.

"Japan imposed unilateral sanctions on Russia without properly understanding the root causes of the situation in Ukraine," he said, adding, "We do not threaten Japan and make no territorial claims against it."

The remarks highlighted the contrast between Russia — which claims no rights over Japanese territory — and Japan, which demands the return of islands in the Kuril chain that Russia controls.

Japan refers to four islands at the southern end of the Kuril chain, north of Hokkaido — Kunashiri, Etorofu, Shikotan and Habomai — as its "Northern Territories" and claims them as its own. Russia maintains that the islands became Russian territory as a result of World War II.

The Soviet Union declared war on Japan in the final days of World War II in 1945 and seized the Kuril Islands. It subsequently expelled the Japanese residents and deployed military forces there, establishing effective control that has continued to this day.

The two countries have failed to conclude a formal peace treaty more than 80 years after the end of World War II, largely because of the territorial dispute. Negotiations over the issue had continued in the past, but relations froze sharply after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, when Japan joined Western sanctions against Moscow.

The Kuril Islands have a population of only about 20,000 but are rich in mineral resources including gold and silver, and the surrounding waters are considered a prime source of marine resources. The islands also hold significant military and strategic value, bordering the operating area of Russia's Pacific Fleet.

Particularly notable was Putin's decision to personally inspect the Pacific Fleet's flagship and receive a military exercise briefing — a move that can be read as a pointed message underscoring Russia's hold over the Kuril Islands.

AFP said Putin's actions risk provoking Japan, which claims sovereignty over part of the Kuril Islands, and could further worsen relations between the two countries.


sjy@heraldcorp.com