Putin accuses Japan of changing position
A day before visiting Iturup, Putin said Japan continued to maintain territorial claims over the southern Kuril Islands, accusing Tokyo of changing its position on the dispute.
“Now we see, unfortunately, changes in positions which, I emphasise, were not provoked in any way on our part,” Putin said while addressing servicemen of Russia’s Pacific Fleet aboard the cruiser Varyag, the fleet’s flagship.
Putin said Moscow had maintained constructive relations with Tokyo on the territorial issue during former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration.
The Russian president travelled to the Kurils after his visit to Sakhalin, where he also held a meeting on the security of Russia’s eastern borders, according to Russian state media.
The islands are rich in mineral
The Kuril archipelago extends from Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula towards Hokkaido. The four disputed islands were seized by the Soviet Union in the final days of World War II and have remained under Russian control.
The islands are strategically important because of their location and rich fishing grounds and mineral resources.
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