Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday said the deterioration in relations between Tokyo and Moscow is “entirely Japan’s fault,” after his first-ever visit to a Russian-held, Japanese-claimed island chain off Hokkaido last month drew backlash.
Putin told reporters during a visit to Kyrgyzstan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization that Moscow has treated its relations with Japan “with great care” and had been prepared to hold discussions regarding peace negotiations for the islands, known in Japan as the Northern Territories and by Russia as the Southern Kurils, despite the matter being “settled.”
Japan maintains that the island chain, consisting of Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai islet group, was illegally seized by the Soviet Union soon after Japan’s surrender in World War II. Russia argues the seizure was legitimate.
The Japanese government said Wednesday that the by Putin were “unacceptable.”
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara made the comments at a regular press conference in Tokyo.
Bilateral relations have worsened following Putin’s first visit to a Russian-held, Japanese-claimed island chain off Hokkaido in August, as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine.
