Japan – Japanese Prime Minister-elect Sanae Takaichi announced on Friday that her government intends to move toward concluding a peace treaty with Russia. This move has been described by political circles as an attempt to reopen relations between the two countries after years of diplomatic stagnation.
In her first speech to the Japanese parliament after her election, Takaichi said, “Relations with Russia are currently in a difficult situation. However, the Japanese government’s course is to resolve the territorial issue and conclude a peace treaty.”
First woman to head the Japanese government
Sanae Takaichi is the first female prime minister in Japan’s history. She is known for her right-wing conservative leanings and previously served in ministerial positions in the government of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe since his first term in 2006.
Observers believe that her statements regarding Russia represent an early test of her diplomatic approach. This test comes particularly in light of the tensions between Tokyo and Moscow since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine and the sanctions Japan has imposed on Russia in coordination with the West.
A decades-old historical conflict
The territorial dispute between Japan and Russia dates back to the aftermath of World War II. This dispute concerns sovereignty over the southern Kuril Islands, which Japan calls the Northern Territories.
In 1956, the Soviet-Japanese Joint Declaration was signed. This declaration stated Moscow’s willingness to consider the possibility of handing over Habomai and Shikotan Islands to Japan after the signing of a peace treaty, without addressing the fate of Kunashir and Iturup. Tokyo considered this a partial and insufficient solution at the time.
Despite numerous rounds of negotiations between the two countries over the past decades, a formal peace treaty has not been signed to date. Moscow insists that the islands became part of the Soviet Union after the war, and that its sovereignty over them is “not subject to debate.”
Cautious Russian responses
In March 2024, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced the suspension of negotiations on a peace treaty. This decision came in response to sanctions imposed by Tokyo due to the war in Ukraine, which it deemed “unfriendly.”
Moscow also abolished visa-free travel for Japanese citizens to the Southern Kuril Islands and ended joint economic cooperation projects with Japan in the region.
The Russian Foreign Ministry commented on Takaichi’s previous statements regarding the Kuril Islands. It emphasized that Russian sovereignty over the Kuril Islands is non-negotiable and stated that “any dialogue is possible only if Tokyo abandons its hostile approach.”
