News - Japan says it does not recognize Russia presidential elections held in southern part of Kuril Islands

The Japanese government does not recognize the Russian presidential elections held in the "northern territories"—as the southern part of the Kuril Islands are called in Japan—, considering them to be native Japanese territories. Yoko Kamikawa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, announced this during a press conference. "The northern territories, covered by the sovereignty of our country, are the ancestral territories of our country, and Russia continues to hold illegal elections there. It applies also to the presidential elections you mentioned," Kamikawa said, answering the respective question of reporters. Also, she repeated the argument that due to the current situation in Ukraine, it is not possible to resume the dialogue with Russia regarding the signing of a peace treaty and the solution to the territorial dispute. Previously, Japanese officials also had stated that Japan does not recognize the results of the Russian presidential elections in the regions that Tokyo considers to be Ukrainian.