Japan protests Russia naming 5 uninhabited Kuril islets

Tokyo issued a formal diplomatic protest after Russia’s prime minister gave names to five uninhabited islets in the Kuril chain. Japan still claims sovereignty over some of the islands in the chain, which it lost to Russia following World War II.


On Saturday, the head of the Russian government, Dmitry Medvedev, signed a decree naming five small islands of the Kuril Islands. Japan was predictably irritated by the move, as it has repeatedly protested any manifestation of Moscow’s sovereignty over what Tokyo calls its “northern territories.”

“(The naming) goes against our country’s stance and is extremely regrettable. Japan lodged a protest Monday through a diplomatic channel,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press conference, Kyodo reports.

The dispute over sovereignty of the Kuril Islands has lingered since the end of World War II. Russia justifies its ownership based on the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951, which abolished Japan’s sovereignty over the 56 islands that form the Kuril chain. However, Tokyo insists that four are not part of the archipelago and should be returned to its control.
 [rt.com]
14/2/17
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