Towards The Arctic Ocean through the Kuril Islands

... offering Japan some new bargaining chips. Photo: rusk.ru Russian-Japanese relations, Japan, 2009 The proposals should offer Japan strategic advantages that could potentially outweigh any desire in Tokyo to insist on its sovereignty over the Southern Kuril Islands. The Russian Arctic seas could be one common denominator to be introduced in the discourse of the Russian-Japanese negotiations. The Arctic region is undoubtedly a long-term strategic priority for Japanese foreign policy. Developing Arctic resources could give Japan ...