Japan’s New PM Pledges to Pursue Peace Treaty with Russia

Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced on Friday that Tokyo intends to conclude a formal peace treaty with Russia, despite the current strain in bilateral relations.

In her keynote address before parliament, Takaichi stated that Japan’s government remains committed to resolving the territorial dispute and signing a peace agreement with Moscow.

Takaichi, Japan’s first female prime minister, is known for her right-leaning political views and previously served in the late Shinzo Abe’s administration, beginning with his first term in 2006.

The roots of the territorial dispute trace back to 1956, when the Soviet Union and Japan signed a joint declaration in which Moscow agreed to consider handing over the Habomai and Shikotan islands after a peace treaty was concluded. 

However, the fate of the Kunashir and Iturup islands was left unresolved.

While the Soviet Union viewed the declaration as a potential settlement of the dispute, Japan regarded it as only a partial step and maintained its claims to all four islands. Subsequent negotiations failed to produce results, and no peace treaty has been signed since World War II.

Russia’s position remains that the islands became part of the Soviet Union after the war and that its sovereignty over them is not open for discussion.

Tensions between the two nations deepened after Japan imposed several sanctions on Russia over the conflict in Ukraine. In response, Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced on 21 March 2024 that Moscow would no longer engage in peace treaty negotiations with Japan.

Russia also cancelled visa-free travel for Japanese citizens to the southern Kuril Islands and withdrew from talks on joint economic activities in the region.