Tokyo lodges strong protest over Putin’s visit to disputed Iturup

Tokyo has lodged a strong protest over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Iturup, one of the Kuril Islands claimed by Japan.

The protest came after Putin visited the island as part of a working trip to Siberia and Russia’s Far East, according to TASS.

Japan’s Foreign Ministry said that Iturup and the other northern territories are “inherent territory” of Japan and lodged a strong protest over the Russian leader’s visit.

Putin’s visit marked the first time a Russian president has personally visited the Kuril Islands. Before him, Russian leaders had visited the islands five times. Dmitry Medvedev visited the islands four times, including while serving as both president and prime minister, while Mikhail Mishustin visited them in 2021.

Iturup is one of the four southern Kuril Islands — Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai — claimed by Japan. Russia considers the islands its territory and has controlled them since 1945. The territorial dispute remains one of the main reasons Moscow and Tokyo have not signed a peace treaty.

By Jeyhun Aghazada