Russia fires missiles near disputed islands as Japan protests Putin’s Kuril visit
Russia conducted live-fire missile drills in the southern Kuril Islands, destroying simulated targets at a range of 300 kilometers.
The exercises came a week after President Putin’s first-ever visit to Iturup, which Japan formally protested as “absolutely unacceptable.”
Russia summoned Japan’s ambassador and declared its sovereignty over the islands “absolutely unshakable,” rejecting Tokyo’s claims as unlawful.
Japan’s foreign minister said Tokyo “cannot tolerate” Russia’s military buildup and lodged a protest over the large-scale maneuvers.
The decades-long Kuril Islands dispute remains the key obstacle to a peace treaty, now further strained by Japan’s sanctions over Ukraine.
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