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Putin visits disputed Kuril Island Iturup for first time; Japan protests
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Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Kuril Island Iturup on August 13, 2026, marking his first personal trip to the disputed island group. Japan claims the islands, referred to as the Northern Territories, as inherent Japanese territory under international law. The visit escalated the long-standing territorial conflict between the two countries, which have never signed a formal peace treaty since World War II. Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi protested strongly on social media, asserting Japan's sovereignty. The visit followed Putin's oversight of naval exercises in the Russian Far East and occurred a day after North Korea launched a ballistic missile, adding regional tension ahead of joint US-South Korea military exercises.
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Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin during a visit to a naval exercise in the Russian Far East. Source: Gavriil Grigorov/Pool Sputnik Kremlin/AP/dpa
For Russia, the island of Iturup belongs to its own national territory. But Japan also claims the area for itself. A visit by Kremlin chief Putin now escalates the territorial conflict.
According to media reports, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the Kuril Island Iturup, claimed by Japan, on Thursday. The state Russian news agency Tass reported that it was Putin's first personal trip to the island group. Previously, he had overseen naval exercises in the Russian Far East.
Russia and Japan have never signed a formal peace treaty to end World War II. The main obstacle to this is the unresolved dispute over the island group, which is referred to in Japan as the Northern Territories. Japan stated that it protests most strongly against Putin's visit.
Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi wrote on X that the northern territories, including Iturup, are historically and under international law inherent Japanese territory. Iturup is located at the southern end of the Kurils near the Japanese island of Hokkaido. The island chain extends northeast to the Russian Kamchatka Peninsula.
In 2010, then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited the disputed area. Medvedev also traveled there several times later as Prime Minister.
One day before Putin's visit, Russia's ally North Korea launched a ballistic missile. Pyongyang fired the missile towards the waters east of the Korean Peninsula. In a few days, a large joint military exercise between South Korea and the USA is scheduled, which North Korea condemns.
Reuters/AFP/krö
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Putin Visits Disputed Kuril Islands, Japan Protests, West Warned