Japan Condemns Chinese Visit to Russia-Held Iturup — SkimNews
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- Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi told Parliament on Oct. 14 that it was 'completely unacceptable' for officials from third countries to treat the Northern Territories as Russian territory, saying Tokyo had conveyed its position to both Russia and China through diplomatic channels on Oct. 13.
- Chinese officials and business leaders from north-eastern Heilongjiang province surveyed tourism and aquaculture projects on Iturup earlier in October, according to local Russian authorities.
- Russia notified Japan of military exercises planned on the island from Oct. 13 to Oct. 17 (per the Sankei newspaper), following President Vladimir Putin's first visit to the territory in August, which Takaichi also called 'unacceptable'.
- China's apparent support for Russia's development of the disputed island comes as Beijing wages a campaign to isolate Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi following remarks she made suggesting Japan could play a role in a collective effort to defend Taiwan from a Chinese invasion.
- Russia has been further angered by Japan's backing for Ukraine—including financial and non-lethal military support—prompting Tokyo to announce new sanctions on Oct. 2; Takaichi held her first summit with President Volodymyr Zelensky at the UN General Assembly in New York.
- Russian authorities said on Oct. 13 they had detained a Japanese journalist in the Sakhalin region on suspicion of collecting and storing information related to Russia's defensive capabilities.
Why it matters: Japan faces simultaneous pressure on three fronts: Beijing isolating Takaichi over her Taiwan remarks, Moscow angered by Japanese backing for Ukraine and the Oct. 2 sanctions, and Russia detaining a Japanese journalist in Sakhalin on suspicion of gathering defense information. The Northern Territories dispute continues to block a formal WWII peace treaty, with the islands seized by the Soviet Union at the war's end and never returned.
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