Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, threatened Japan with “terrible consequences” over Tokyo’s position on the disputed Southern Kuril Islands, The Moscow Times reported on August 13. The escalation in rhetoric followed a diplomatic dispute triggered by a recent visit by Russian leader Vladimir Putin to the disputed islands, which separate the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean and serve as a strategic buffer for Russian nuclear submarine bases in the Far East.
The territorial dispute intensified after Tokyo officially protested Putin’s trip to the islands. In response, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Russian Ambassador Nikolay Nozdrev. In turn, Medvedev criticized Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on social media platform X, warning that Tokyo’s claims to the territory would lead to catastrophic consequences.
“Prime Minister of Japan Takaichi can babble as much as she wants about how the Kuril Islands are ‘historically Japanese,’ but this chatter will change nothing,” wrote Medvedev. “They were, are, and will be Russian land. Anyone who does not understand this will face terrible consequences for their illusions.”
Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reaffirmed its firm position, stating that the southern islands—which include Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan, and the Habomai islands—are “historically and under international law an inseparable territory of our country.” Prime Minister Takaichi emphasized that Putin’s visit “will inevitably strengthen anti-Russian sentiment in Japanese society and complicate the restoration of relations” between the two countries.
Historical roots and failed negotiations
The territorial dispute dates back to the final days of World War II, when Soviet forces seized the entire Kuril chain by September 1945. These territories were later incorporated into the Soviet Union, and the entire Japanese population was deported. Tokyo has consistently viewed Soviet and later Russian control over the islands as an illegal occupation.
Despite more than 25 meetings between Putin and former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe until 2020, the two countries failed to resolve the issue.
Collapse of relations and increased defense rhetoric
Relations between the two countries deteriorated completely after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In March 2022, Moscow abruptly withdrew from peace treaty negotiations after Japan joined international sanctions against Russia. Subsequently, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs banned former Japanese island residents from visiting without a visa. By April 2022, Tokyo officially referred to the Southern Kurils as “illegally occupied territories” for the first time in nearly two decades.
The territorial standoff over the Kurils is unfolding against the backdrop of Tokyo’s increasing defense rhetoric. In its annual “White Paper,” Japan’s Ministry of Defense unveiled plans to strengthen its military capabilities, emphasizing the expansion of coordination between Russia, China, and North Korea. The report highlights Moscow’s support for North Korea’s military modernization and the increase in joint Chinese and Russian patrols of strategic bombers near Japanese airspace, which recently led to the highest number of Japanese fighter jet scrambles in three years. Japanese defense officials characterized the joint maneuvers as a deliberate show of force aimed at pressuring Tokyo.
Source: United24
