Russia proposes renaming Kuril Islands as tensions with Japan continue to escalate

In a new development in the decades-old territorial dispute between Russia and Japan, Moscow indicated that it would give a Russian name to the Kuril Islands, which remains contested by Tokyo. According to Sputnik,  Russian space agency Roscosmos director general Dmitry Rogozin said on Monday that the Kuril Islands could be renamed after Russian ships and events of the early 20th century’s Russo-Japanese War. 

It is to note that Russia and Japan have been unable to reach a peace treaty and formally end World War II hostilities due to territorial disputes over the isles. While Moscow has said that the isles are a part of its Kuril chain, Japan calls its Northern Territories. Rogozin, a former deputy prime minister who oversaw Russia’s arms industry, suggested changing the name of one of the islands to Varyag to commemorate the cruiser whose sinking started the Russo-Japanese War in 1904. 

"Always, when states added territories they would give them their own names (... ) Why don't these islands have Russian names?" Rogozin said as per Sputnik.

"This would be much more logical than the names with which we now have been calling these islands and which destroy the Russian language."

Rogozin proposed renaming Habomai Islands

Roscosmos director general has been significantly vocal about Moscow’s stringent stance on social media since the Kremlin announced the ‘Special’ military operation in Ukraine in late February. As per reports, Rogozin, who is known for his strident statements, has previously proposed that the Habomai Islands could be called the archipelago of Russian hero sailors. However, Russia is presently facing a global backlash over its military aggression in Ukraine. 

Japan, along with several other Western allies, have slapped economic sanctions on Russia after it sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine. Meanwhile, Kyiv has claimed that Russia has launched an unprovoked war. Amid already tense relations between Russia and Japan, Moscow withdrew from the peace treaty talks and froze the joint economic projects related to the disputed Kuril Islands because of Tokyo’s sanctions over the Russia-Ukraine war. In the diplomatic Bluebook, Tokyo has even described the four disputed islands with Russia as illegally occupied areas.

Image: AP