Putin sparks anger as he makes first visit to disputed islands that stopped Russia & Japan EVER signing WW2 peace treaty

VLADIMIR Putin has reopened a World War Two wound by making his first trip to the disputed Kuril Islands. Fresh off observing naval drills in nearby Sakhalin, the Russian President landed on the Russian-controlled chain in the Pacific Ocean, also claimed by Japan. Putin oversees the final stage of a Pacific Fleet’s naval drills from onboard the Russian Navy’s guided missile cruiser Varyag Credit: AFP Japan says it “strongly protests” the visit to Iturup, one of the islands also known by its Japanese name Etorofu. Footage circulated by the Kremlin showed Putin touring a fish processing plant and sampling caviar. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! With relations currently at a new low over Japanese sanctions against Russia over its bloodshed in Ukraine, the trip can only further inflame the dispute. Putin breezed in telling Russian residents: “What lovely weather you have here! It’s like a holiday resort.” The dictator later added: “I’ll just have to assume it’s always like this here.” Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi reacted to the trip earlier today: “I was informed that Russian President Putin visited Iturup Island. “The Northern Territories, including Iturup Island, are inherently Japanese territory both historically and under international law, and the Government of Japan strongly protests this visit.” Japan asserts territorial rights to the four southernmost islands of the chain, which it calls the Northern Territories, and argue they are illegally occupied. Most read in The Sun Putin meets local residents on Iturup island, one of four islands in the contested chain known as the Kuril Islands Credit: AFP Putin onboard the Russian Navy’s guided missile cruiser Varyag Credit: AFP Under the orders of ruler Josef Stalin, the Soviet Union seized the four territories in the final days of World War Two in August–September 1945. An estimated 17,000 Japanese residents were subsequently expelled. The dispute has kept the countries from signing a peace treaty formally ending their hostilities. Decades of diplomatic efforts have not produced any visible results. Putin talks to the crew of the vessel Credit: AFP A review of the honour guard aboard the cruiser Credit: Alamy Russia over the years has also beefed up its military presence on the Kuril Islands in moves that appeared to underscore its firm stance to not let go of the territory. Putin’s visit comes just a day after he accused ⁠NATO ​of ⁠infiltrating the ⁠Asia-Pacific region, and ​creating ⁠tension in ‌the Arctic. He had arrived in the city of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, the Far Eastern island’s administrative centre, to participate in the final stage of a war exercise conducted by the Pacific Fleet, which began on August 4. In his address to Russian servicemen, Putin said that exercises such as those are necessary to maintain readiness and protect his country’s interests and security in the region. Arguing that the potential for conflict there is growing, he said tensions are also escalating in the Arctic region “around the use of the Northern Sea Route.” “Russia has always … confirmed its readiness to cooperate in utilizing the advantages of the Northern Sea Route, within the framework of current maritime law,” the president warned, expressing that plans to deploy new weapons systems in the Asia-Pacific region pose a threat to Russia. He went on to accuse Japan of imposing sanctions on Russia that he said were “unprovoked” on Russia’s part. Comment now