Medvedev visits disputed island off Hokkaido

YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, Russia (Kyodo) -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday traveled to Kunashiri Island, one of the Russian-held islands claimed by Japan, ignoring Tokyo's warning that a visit would harm bilateral ties.

According to Russia's Interfax news agency, Medvedev said after visiting a local geothermal power plant and a seafood processing factory that he intends to invest funds for the development of the region so residents can continue living there.

Residents contacted by Kyodo News over the phone said they were happy that the president had visited, as they hoped it would lead to better infrastructure on the island, and that the island would never be handed over to Japan since Russians had already lived there for a long time.

Medvedev is the first leader from Russia or the former Soviet Union to set foot on any of the islands off Hokkaido, which are called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia.

In Tokyo, Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara summoned Russian Ambassador to Japan Mikhail Bely to the ministry to lodge a protest over the president's trip.

Maehara said earlier in the day that the visit "hurts Japanese public sentiment," while Prime Minister Naoto Kan said that the islands are Japanese territory and the visit by the Russian president is "extremely deplorable." They made the remarks during a Diet committee meeting.

Medvedev arrived in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, capital of the Russian Far East province of Sakhalin, early Monday morning on the way back from his trip to Vietnam, where he attended meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and left shortly afterward aboard a small plane for Kunashiri, a source close to the Russian presidential office said.

A woman on Kunashiri said she had "longed for" the visit by a Russian president, which "proves that this island is Russian territory."

Another islander, who is head of a kindergarten that was inspected by the president, said his visit showed that "the Russian government has not turned its back on us."

A pensioner who has visited Japan many times under a program allowing visa-free reciprocal visits by Russian islanders and former Japanese islanders, said the living standard of the Russian islanders is "pitifully low, compared to the development of Hokkaido."

"The Russian government should enhance its control of the island to develop it," she said.

Islanders said the president drove an off-road vehicle around the island himself.

According to Itar-Tass, another Russian news agency, Medvedev seemed satisfied with the progress in local infrastructure development, saying, "A cellphone is usable anywhere on the island. And it's not the Japanese radio wave."

His visit coincided with the deepening territorial dispute between Japan and China following maritime collisions in September, leaving Tokyo in a difficult position with worsening relations with Moscow and Beijing.

In late September, Medvedev said he would definitely visit the islands in the near future, prompting Tokyo to warn that it would be significantly detrimental to Japan-Russia relations.

The islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri and Shikotan as well as the Habomai islet group were seized by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II. The bilateral dispute over the islands has prevented Japan and Russia from signing a postwar peace treaty, as Japan has called for their return.

(Mainichi Japan) November 1, 2010