"Resort Weather": Putin Visits Disputed Islands, Angering Japan

Putin made his first visit to the Kuril Islands, disputed between Russia and Japan, sparking sharp protests in Tokyo. The visit took place amid Russian military exercises and a ballistic missile launch by North Korea. Putin spoke with local residents and told them the weather reminded him of a resort. Russia and Japan have not signed a peace treaty since World War II due to the sovereignty dispute over the islands.

Russian President Vladimir Putin personally visited the Kuril archipelago, disputed between Russia and Japan, for the first time, and the visit sparked sharp protests in Tokyo. The visit, reported by Reuters according to Russia's TASS news agency, took place amid Russian military exercises in the Far East and a day after a ballistic missile launch by North Korea. Putin took the opportunity to speak with local residents and told them: "What great weather you have here, it's just like a resort!" One of the women present replied with a laugh: "And we thought you arranged it!" Since the end of World War II, Russia and Japan have not signed a formal peace treaty, with the main obstacle being the sovereignty dispute over the islands, which Japan calls the "Northern Territories" and Russia considers part of the Kuril Islands. Soviet forces seized the four islands near Hokkaido at the end of the war, and they have remained under Russian control. The visit comes just days before joint military exercises by South Korea and the United States, which Pyongyang traditionally condemns.