EXPLAINED: Why Putin’s Kuril Islands Visit Has Japan Worried

By Times Now World

Community Score: 50% | 1.6K views | 3d

0 community ratings: null thumbs up, null thumbs down

Vladimir Putin made his first-ever visit to a disputed island near Japan — then boarded a warship and warned his navy it's on the front lines. What You Need To Know: Putin visited Iturup (Etorofu), one of the Japan-claimed Kuril Islands, for the first time ever — touring a fish-processing plant, a hospital, and a school. Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called the visit "absolutely unacceptable," saying it hurts the feelings of the Japanese people. A day earlier, Putin boarded the Guards missile cruiser Varyag to observe Pacific Fleet exercises in Russia's Far East. Putin told sailors, "You are not in the rear... you are also on the front line," tying Pacific Fleet readiness directly to Russia's ongoing "special military operation." The Kuril Islands dispute dates back to 1945, when Soviet forces seized the islands after Japan's surrender — and it remains the main obstacle to a formal Russia-Japan peace treaty. Watch the full breakdown of what Putin's Kuril Islands trip means f

Tags: putin kuril islands, putin kurils, kuril islands dispute, putin japan, russia japan tensions, iturup island, etorofu island, northern territories japan, putin pacific fleet, russian navy pacific, russian missile cruiser varyag, putin varyag, putin front line, kuril islands japan dispute, russia pacific fleet, japan russia territorial dispute, why putin visited kuril islands, putin first kuril visit, russia military pacific, japan kuril islands