Japan-Russia Territory Dispute: Wall Street Journal

Russia and Japan launched a new program aimed at resolving a territorial dispute that has lingered since 1945 when the Soviet Union seized the islands of Kunashir and Iturup. Japanese with no ties to the islands boarded a ship for a visit. One scholar suggests that the trip may have been more symbolic with differences between Russia and Japan still wide. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to study joint rule of a group of contested islands, aiming for a peace treaty before this year, reports the Wall Street Journal, but arguments and accusations interfered. Putin suggests the islands are too small to disrupt relations between the two countries, but Abe says not so fast. “Tokyo has frowned on Moscow’s buildup of military infrastructure on the islands, and Japanese media have reported that Russia plans to deploy additional missile systems on two of the islands,” report Ann M. Simmons and Chieko Tsuneoka. “Russian authorities haven’t confirmed the reports that it plans to deploy additional missiles.” Meanwhile, public opinion in Russia creeps toward relinquishing the islands. – YaleGlobal