According to a report by the Russian Satellite News Agency on the 6th, the U.S. State Department identified the birthplace of 20,000 Russian residents living in the South Kuril Islands as “Japan” in a green card application document. In response, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs protested to the United States on December 6.
Russia believes that the U.S. State Department’s move is questioning the results of World War II and encouraging “revengeanceism”. In response to the green card regulations issued by the U.S. State Department, the Russian Foreign Ministry posted on social media: “Do you need more evidence to prove that the United States is a revisionist power? The entire Kuril Islands were handed over to the Soviet Union under the Yalta Agreement signed in 1945.” According to reports, Russia collectively refers to the above four islands as the South Kuril Islands, while Japan calls them the four northern islands, all of which are under the de facto control of Russia.
In 1956, Japan and Russia signed the Soviet-Japanese Joint Declaration.
Because the two sides could not reach a consensus on the sovereignty of the South Kuril Islands, the subsequent peace treaty negotiations were inconclusive, which cast a long shadow over the relationship between the two countries. Russia insists that the South Kuril Islands have been incorporated into Russia’s territory and have indisputable sovereignty over them in accordance with the results of World War II, while Japan has always made the return of the four islands a condition for the conclusion of a peace treaty.
