60 yrs later, still no treaty between Japan, Russia

World War II ended 60 years ago, but not between Japan and Russia. PM Junichiro Koizumi left for Moscow on Sunday to attend ceremonies marki...

World War II ended 60 years ago, but not between Japan and Russia. PM Junichiro Koizumi left for Moscow on Sunday to attend ceremonies marking the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, yet his own nation has yet to sign a peace treaty with its northern neighbour to put a formal end to hostilities.

At fault is a dispute over four islands seized by the Soviet Union shortly after it declared war on Japan on August 8, 1945. Coming just two days after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, the invasion helped bring Japan to its knees and end the war on all fronts, and bitter Japanese memories still linger.

Moscow has offered to return two of the islands, a proposal Japan has rejected.

Story continues below this ad

While Koizumi recently apologised for Japan’s wartime actions during an Asia-Africa conference in Indonesia in April and later in Amsterdam, officials said no apology was likely in Moscow. ‘‘It was Russia that invaded Japan. Japan did not invade Russia,’’ said Foreign Ministry spokesman Akira Chiba.

The quarrel over the windswept islands, the nearest just 15 km from Hokkaido, has become so stalemated that the two sides have been unable even to agree on a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin. ‘‘The President is scheduled to visit Japan, so I want to talk about the future of Japan-Russia relations including that,’’ Kyodo news agency quoted Koizumi as saying before leaving Tokyo.

Progress also appears stalled on a key Siberian oil pipeline. Japanese media reported last month that Russia was likely to build a pipeline to China before one to Japan.

Putin and Koizumi are due to meet on Monday for the first time since November, which analysts say could inject some new life into bilateral ties. ‘‘Any amount of progress, no matter how small, is important,’’ said diplomatic commentator Tetsuya Ozeki. ‘‘Our two nations are responsible on many big issues, especially in maintaining security in East Asia.’’