The Russian Foreign Ministry called the topic of signing a peace treaty with Japan closed

The issue related to the possibility of concluding a peace agreement with Japan is closed for Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at the briefing.

“As for the topic of a peace treaty, it is closed for us. Let me remind you that the statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry dated March 21, 2022 clearly stated that we did not intend to continue negotiations with Japan on a peace treaty due to the impossibility of discussing the signing of fundamental documents on bilateral relations with a state that takes openly unfriendly positions and seeks to damage the interests our country,” she said.

Zakharova also stated that Japan, as a member of the UN, must comply with the UN Charter, in particular, its provisions, which consolidated the results of the Second World War. Otherwise, there would be nothing left but to leave the world organization, as Japan had already done in February 1933 with its withdrawal from the League of Nations, she added.

On March 21, 2022, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it was ending negotiations with the Japanese authorities on concluding a peace treaty due to unilateral sanctions that Tokyo had imposed in connection with a special operation in Ukraine. In addition, Moscow canceled visa-free travel for the Japanese to the Kuril Islands and imposed a number of other restrictions on Tokyo.

On February 8, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced that Tokyo did not change its position on the issue of ownership of the islands that make up the southern part of the Kuriles, and will not change it in the future. On February 7, he called it regrettable that the peace treaty between the Russian Federation and Japan has not yet been concluded. The Japanese government is determined to resolve the territorial issue and conclude a peace treaty, said he then.

Russia and Japan did not conclude a peace treaty following World War II because of the protracted dispute over the South Kuriles. The state of war between the two countries was officially ended in 1956, after which the USSR and Japan resumed diplomatic relations in accordance with the Moscow Declaration. According to the Japanese position, Russia must hand over to Japan the four southern islands of the Kuril chain. Moscow, on the other hand, recognizes the USSR declaration of 1956, which refers to the possibility of transferring the two islands after the conclusion of a peace treaty.