Russia Announces Development of Kuril Islands Amid Dispute with Japan

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] Major foreign media outlets reported on the 25th (local time), citing Russia's state-run TASS news agency, that Russia plans to fully develop the Kuril Islands (called the Northern Territories by Japan), over which it is in a territorial dispute with Japan.

Yuri Trutnev, Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Presidential Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District, stated during his visit to Khabarovsk in Russia's Far East region that "We will invest in and fully develop the Kuril Islands, which Japan falsely claims we are illegally occupying."

The Kuril Islands are an archipelago stretching about 1,300 km between Japan's Hokkaido and Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, currently under Russia's effective control.

Japan claims sovereignty over four southern islands among them?Kunashir, Iturup, the Habomai islets, and Shikotan?referring to them as the Northern Territories.

It is known that the Japanese government plans to include in its 2022 Diplomatic Bluebook the statement that "The Northern Territories are Japan's inherent territory but are currently illegally occupied by Russia."

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Japan, along with Western allies, imposed strong economic sanctions on Russia. Major foreign media reported that "Russia's recent announcement is expected to further escalate tensions between the two countries."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.