The Southern Kuril Islands are an integral part of Russia and this is an inescapable reality. This was stated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, commenting on the wording of the “illegal occupation” of the islands in Japan’s “Blue Book on Diplomacy”. The ministry added that such passages are considered insignificant.
“The Southern Kuril Islands are an integral part of the territory of the Russian Federation for legal, including international, reasons following the results of the Second World War”, RIA Novosti quotes a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Recall that recently, in the annual report of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, published in early April, it is stated that the southern part of the Kuril Islands is considered “original Japanese territories under the illegal occupation of Russia”.
The document notes that the question of the ownership of territories is the most difficult in the relations between the two countries. The Kremlin noted that Tokyo’s stance on “illegal occupation” is seen as unacceptable.
“We do not accept such a formulation of the question and such formulations. The Kurils are an integral part of the Russian Federation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Earlier it became known that China, for the first time in almost 60 years, changed its mind about ownership of the Kuril Islands. In 1964 Mao Zedong supported Japan on this issue, but now Beijing has taken a neutral position.
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