Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said that Japan expressed its unpopularity over Russia's decision to recognize Japan's "Northern Territories Return Alliance" as unpopular in Russia.
"We consider this statement by the Russian side [that the organization's activities are unpopular] extremely one-sided and unacceptable," Hayashi said. On February 7, we raised ** through diplomatic channels and asked for cancellation. ”
On Tuesday, Russia's Ministry of Justice added three non-governmental organizations from Japan, Ukraine and Switzerland to the list of undesirable foreign and international non-governmental organizations operating in Russia: Ukraine's "Crimean Tatar Resource Center", Switzerland's "Global Industry Alliance" and Japan's "Union for the Return of the Northern Territories".
The South Kuril Islands (known as the "Four Northern Islands" in Japan) are a southward extension of the Kuril Islands located in the Pacific Northwest, with a total area of 5,03833 square kilometers. The South Kuril Islands are located at the southern tip of the Kuril Islands. Among the four islands with territorial disputes, the island is the largest, with an area of about 3,200 square kilometers.
In 1951, Japan and the United States signed the one-sided "San Francisco Peace Treaty", in which Chapter II, "Territory", stipulated that Japan renounced all rights and claims to the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin Islands acquired after the Portsmouth Peace Treaty in 1905. At the Yalta Conference in 1945, the United States and Britain promised the Soviet Union the entire territory of South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands after the war, and signed the Yalta Agreement. After Japan's unconditional surrender, the Soviet Union declared the occupation of the territory under the Yalta Agreement, making it Soviet territory. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia inherited the actual Soviet occupation of the land. This was a new pattern of international divisions formed after the Second World War.
Since the middle of the last century, Moscow and Tokyo have been negotiating a post-World War II peace treaty, and the main obstacle remains the disagreement over the ownership of the South Kuril Islands. After the end of World War II, the entire archipelago was incorporated into the Soviet Union, but Japan still claimed rights to Iturup Island (known as "Setoku Island" in Japan), Kunashir Island (known as "Kunashir Island" in Japan), Scotan Island (known as "Shikotan Island" in Japan), Hebamayi Island (known as "Hamai Island" in Japan), and a number of uninhabited islands.
Russia has repeatedly stressed that Russia's sovereignty over these territories is unquestionable and has the relevant international legal framework. Russia announced on March 21, 2022 that it will stop negotiations on a peace treaty with Japan in view of Japan's unilateral sanctions against Russia on the situation in Ukraine.