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Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first official visit to the disputed Kuril Islands on August 13, 2026, travelling to Iturup as territorial tensions between Moscow and Tokyo remain unresolved. Japan strongly protested the visit, saying the islands are historically and legally part of Japanese territory.

Putin arrived on Iturup as part of a wider tour of Russia’s Far Eastern Sakhalin region. The island is one of four southernmost Kuril Islands claimed by both Russia and Japan and has remained at the center of a territorial dispute dating back to the final days of World War II.

Accompanied by Sakhalin Governor Valery Limarenko, Putin toured a fish-processing complex, a local hospital and a school. He also held a working meeting with the regional governor. Russian state media described the trip as Putin’s first visit to the Kuril archipelago, giving the journey particular political significance.

The visit came after Putin travelled to nearby Sakhalin Island, where he addressed servicemen aboard the cruiser Varyag, the flagship of Russia’s Pacific Fleet, during military drills in the region. He also held a meeting focused on security along Russia’s eastern borders.

Putin’s visit to Iturup follows previous trips to the disputed islands by senior Russian officials. Former President Dmitry Medvedev became the first Russian president to visit the territory in 2010, while Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin visited the islands in 2021.

Japan’s Protests of Visit

Tokyo responded to Putin’s visit with a formal diplomatic protest. Japan’s government maintains that the four disputed islands, Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Habomai islets, are an inherent part of Japanese territory. Japanese officials have repeatedly referred to the islands as the “Northern Territories.”

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi described Putin’s visit as “absolutely unacceptable” and said it had worsened Japanese sentiment toward Russia.

Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi also issued a strong protest, saying the islands were “an inherent part of Japan’s territory both historically and under international law.”

Japan subsequently summoned Russian Ambassador Nikolay Nozdrev to convey its formal objection to the visit.

The dispute has become more sensitive as relations between Moscow and Tokyo have deteriorated following Russia’s military operation in Ukraine. Japan imposed sanctions on Russia after the conflict began in 2022, contributing to a further breakdown in bilateral relations.

Putin addressed the deterioration in relations on Wednesday, referring to the period when former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pursued closer dialogue with Moscow. He said that constructive dialogue had existed during Abe’s tenure but criticized what he described as changes in Japan’s position.

“Unfortunately, changes in positions which, I emphasize, were not provoked in any way on our part,” Putin said.

Dispute Since World War II

The territorial dispute over the four islands has prevented Russia and Japan from signing a formal peace treaty since World War II.

The Kuril Islands form a long volcanic chain stretching roughly 1,300 kilometers between Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula and Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido. The four disputed islands are the southernmost part of the chain.

The Soviet Union seized the islands in the final stages of World War II after declaring war on Japan in August 1945. Moscow has maintained control of the territory ever since.

Japan disputes Russia’s sovereignty over Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan, and the Habomai islets, calling them the Northern Territories. Russia, meanwhile, maintains that its sovereignty over the islands was established as a result of World War II.

The Soviet takeover also resulted in the displacement of the islands’ Japanese population. Around 17,000 Japanese residents were deported following the Soviet occupation, while the islands are now home to roughly 20,000 Russian citizens.

The islands are also economically important because of their rich fishing grounds and deposits of minerals, including gold and silver.

Strategic Importance for Russia

Beyond the territorial dispute, the Kuril Islands have significant military and strategic value because of their location between the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk.

Russia has maintained military facilities on the islands since the Soviet era and has strengthened its military presence there in recent years. Iturup is home to a Russian military air base, while the wider island chain provides important positions for monitoring and controlling access between the Pacific and the Sea of Okhotsk.

The strategic importance of the islands has increased amid closer military cooperation between Russia and China.

Last month, Russian and Chinese naval warships sailed through a strait in the Kuril Islands during a joint patrol. Russia also regularly conducts military exercises in the region, moves that have drawn protests from Japan.

Putin’s visit therefore comes against a broader backdrop of increased military activity in Russia’s Far East and heightened tensions between Moscow and Tokyo.

Repeated Efforts to Resolve Dispute

Russia and Japan have made several attempts to settle the territorial dispute, but none has produced a final agreement.

The two countries restored diplomatic relations through a joint declaration in 1956, which ended their state of war. Under the declaration, the Soviet Union agreed to transfer Shikotan and the Habomai Islands to Japan after the conclusion of a formal peace treaty.

However, the broader territorial dispute remained unresolved during the Cold War. Negotiations resumed following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The two sides later produced agreements and declarations, including the 1993 Tokyo Declaration and the 2001 Irkutsk Statement, which reaffirmed the 1956 declaration as a basis for future negotiations.

Diplomatic efforts gained momentum under former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. In 2018, Abe and Putin agreed to intensify negotiations toward a peace treaty based on the 1956 declaration.

The process subsequently collapsed following the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict and Japan’s sanctions against Moscow. Russia suspended peace treaty negotiations with Japan in response. Putin’s first personal visit to the disputed islands is unlikely to ease those tensions.

The trip reinforces Russia’s claim and continued administration of the territory while highlighting the strategic importance of the country’s Far Eastern regions. Putin’s itinerary, which included infrastructure and public facilities on Iturup, also underscored Russia’s efforts to demonstrate its continued presence and governance there.

The dispute has remained unresolved for more than eight decades, preventing the signing of a peace treaty between the two countries despite repeated diplomatic efforts.

Putin’s appearance on Iturup, combined with Russia’s continued military activities in the region and Japan’s increasingly strained relations with Moscow, has brought the longstanding territorial dispute back into sharp focus.