The key facts

  • Japan's government spokesperson Minoru Kihara announced the continuation of 'necessary communication' with Russia and work toward overcoming the deadlock in relations.
  • The statement was made on the 70th anniversary of the 1956 joint declaration that normalized relations between the two countries.
  • The territorial dispute over the islands (Japan calls them the Northern Territories, Russia — the Southern Kurils) prevents the signing of a peace treaty since the end of World War II.

Tokyo intends to continue dialogue with Moscow

Japan on Monday, October 19, declared its intention to continue 'necessary communication' with Russia amid the 'difficult state' of bilateral relations, Kyodo News reports, citing a statement by Japan's chief government spokesperson Minoru Kihara in Tokyo. The statement came on the day the two sides mark 70 years since the signing of the joint declaration. 'Even amid the difficult state of Japan-Russia relations, we will continue necessary communication with the Russian side and work toward overcoming the current deadlock,' the agency quotes Kihara as saying.

Context of relations and sanctions

Bilateral relations deteriorated after Russia launched its war with Ukraine in February 2022. Japan joined its Western allies in imposing sanctions against Russia.

The territorial dispute remains the key obstacle

After World War II, the countries normalized relations with an agreement dated October 19, 1956, but a long-standing territorial dispute persists over a group of islands off the Japanese island of Hokkaido. Japan calls them the Northern Territories, Russia — the Southern Kurils. Tokyo believes the Northern Territories, comprising Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Habomai islet group, were 'illegally' seized by the Soviet Union shortly after Japan's capitulation on August 15, 1945. Russia maintains that the seizure was lawful. Because of the dispute, the countries have been unable to sign a peace treaty since the end of World War II, and in recent years tensions have been exacerbated by Japan's sanctions against Moscow over the war in Ukraine.