Russia builds new barracks on disputed islands near Japan; Tokyo protests

Russian politicians say they fear Japan might agree to deploy US missile facilities on the islands if any are returned to Tokyo, and that Moscow could only countenance a deal if it received a guarantee that ruled out such a scenario.

Soviet forces seized the four islands at the end of World War II and Moscow and Tokyo both claim sovereignty over them. (Reuters)

Russia said on Monday it had built new barracks for troops on a disputed chain of islands near Japan and would build more facilities for armoured vehicles, prompting a diplomatic protest from Tokyo.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said it planned to shift troops next week into four housing complexes on two of the four disputed islands, known as the Southern Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan.

Japan’s defence ministry says 3,500 Russian troops are deployed on the two larger islands as part of an on-going military buildup. The news came after the Kremlin said Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe might visit Russia on Jan. 21 as the two countries step up efforts to defuse the territorial dispute that has prevented them from signing a World War Two peace treaty.

In Tokyo, Foreign Minister Taro Kono told a regular news conference that Japan would lodge a protest. Japan said in July it had asked Russia to reduce its military activity on the islands, a plea Moscow dismissed as unhelpful megaphone diplomacy at the time. “We plan to lodge a protest,” Kono told reporters, adding that Japan would clearly state its position during negotiations. “The premise of the upcoming negotiations is solving the island issue and concluding a peace treaty,” he added.