Should Russia return the four disputed islands off Hokkaido to Japan?

Monday 08th June, 03:00 AM JST

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LIBERTAS at 03:12 AM JST - 12th June

The islands are Russian. Period. Get over it, Japan, Ivan will never give them back, nor should they. Regardless of how many Muneo Houses Suzuki Muneo builds on them.
hellhound at 10:58 AM JST - 13th June

I don't care, I am not either russian or japanese
Brunobear at 11:11 AM JST - 13th June

Japan might start acting honorably with the poor countries of the South Pacific and provide them with assistance to sustain them and not just drip feed them a few yen to get their vote on whaling. Japan has not yet learned that not only must it be a good citizen it must be abundantly seen to be a good citizen if it wants support to recover any of its former pre WW11 territories. It is highly unlikely it will get the islands on its present "we don't care what the world that has rebuilt us thinks" diplomacy. People of other nations have to want to give territory back. Japan is an insular country and wasted an abundance of opportunities over the past 40 years. To have a friend you have to be a friend!
VoXman at 11:54 AM JST - 13th June

As Stalin decided to wait until the Japanese military was on its knees to sweep in Manchuria, Korea , and the Kurils with the intent on invading Hokaido, the Soviets were merely stealing from the allies plate that which so many others died fighting for. So they were compelled to return Manchuria, and North Korea-not before leaving a Communist dictator in place, and told that they could have the Kurils which the ignorant allies assumed had no value to the Japanese. Well they do, like the Aleutians have value to the US. So from that stand point the Kurils were a spoil that only the as the victor the US could claim, and since the US returned to the Japanese ALL the original lands they held or were granted to them since the end of the first world war with the exception of Korea since it was not a spoil taken from an aggressor as Japan was the aggressor in that, the Kurils belong to the Japanese in the same way as Iwo Jima does. Yet in there, 8,000 plus US died there, still it was returned to Japan. Return the Kurils.
Seiharinokaze at 02:08 PM JST - 13th June

I dont think the Islands should go back to Japan, yes Russia did break the non-aggression pact with japan, however Japan attempted an invasion of the soviet union in 1939 it launched a surprise attack against Russia in 1905, Japan historically has been the aggressor against Russia.

mummet

Siberia and Littoral province are no less than the result of Russian expansionism. Please compare the size of Russia with that of Japan: 17 million square km to 0.37 million km2. After defeating Napoleon in 19th century, Russia became more aggressive going down the Balkan Peninsula and over the Caucasus to the Middle East while taking the Baltic area. They just behaved similarly in the Far East too. Do you still say that Japan was categorically expansionistic against Russia?

At any rate the U.S. instigated the Soviets to break the neutral treaty and enter the war on the Allied side against Japan giving the Kuriles away as collateral. As a result they invaded and took illegally the islands which belong to Japan as per the Treaty of Saint Petersburg of 1875. So in this point the U.S. (along with Britain) conspired with Russia (then the Soviets) to violate the international law and commit a kind of crime against peace.
Zurg at 04:58 AM JST - 14th June

I voted no. Japan attacked Russia, they should understand the consequences. Japan should appoligize extensively for the next 50 years. Even though it happened over 50 years ago, it will take another 50 to gain confidence from them and others. Hopefully China will change on the way.
UnagiDon at 06:56 AM JST - 14th June

Japan attacked Russia, they should understand the consequences.

Japan attacked Russia? Hardly. Perhaps you should understand history before lecturing others on lecturing the consequences.
Beerplease at 10:34 AM JST - 14th June

Without the island issue and that of the N. Korean abductees, Japan would turn on itself and society would fall apart--they need these issues of distraction.
TheMarion at 11:45 AM JST - 14th June

Japan agreed to the Cairo Accords which said that all lands taken by violence or greed shall be returned to their rightful owners and Japan signed these papers in agreement, but now wants to weasel out of their decision exactly as they did when the Emperor agreed to retun the Ryukyu Islands but then came the "secret agreement" Japan cannot be trusted...
mummet at 03:16 PM JST - 14th June

Seiharinokaze Im not talking about if Russia was an expansionist Empire or not, the size or Russia and Japan has no meaning to this discussion at all. If were talking about History I think it was the Yalta talks that it was decided Britain and US launch an Invasion in Western Europe to help the Russians then when Germany was defeated Russia being an allied power Since June 1941 would enter the war against Japan.

Russia committed a crime against peace??? Because of Japan tens of millions of people lost their lives, I'm glad Russia entered the war against Japan it brought a swift conclusion to the end of the war and helped restore China. Try reading about Japans strategic dilemma of the Northern and Southern Strategies. Try arguing the point rather than trying to detract the argument.

Either way it changes nothing, Japan started the war and if they had one the war in the Pacific they would have launched another war against the USSR. Japan lost, lost its territory and its time it came to deal with that.
Seiharinokaze at 07:47 PM JST - 14th June

mummet

The Yalta was an occasion to coordinate the interests of the major powers on how to divide the post-war world. The Soviet Union was selectively supportive to the Allied powers being rather guileful in expanding its influence. The Kuriles and part of Poland and Germany were given to the Soviet Union as booty for their helping hand. Transfer of territories executed without the participation by the countries concerned, however, is against international law and also against the Cairo Communique which declared that the Allied powers "covet no gain for themselves and have no thought of territorial expansion." Don't you think that the Soviet Union was just as aggressive in the Far East as in East Europe? By what were the Kuriles taken if not by violence and greed?

Russia committed a crime against peace??? Because of Japazn tens of millions of people lost their lives, I'm glad Russia entered the war against Japan it brought a swift conclusion to the end of the war and helped restore China.

FYI because of the Soviet Union tens of millions of people lost their lives. And for a swift conclusion to the end of the war, by June 1945 the Japanese government sought to cease the war through the mediation of the Soviets basically accepting what Cordell Hull had proposed four years before. It's regrettable that the Allied powers ignored it and let the Soviets go to war.
mummet at 08:51 PM JST - 14th June

FYI because of the Soviet Union tens of millions of people lost their lives.

Irrelevant, USSR did not start the war

FYI

After the war, Kentaro Suzuki and others from his government and their apologists claimed they were secretly working towards peace, and could not publicly advocate it. They cite the Japanese concept of haragei—"the art of hidden and invisible technique"—to justify the dissonance between their public actions and alleged behind-the-scenes work. However, many historians reject this interpretation. Robert J. C. Butow

oh, you mean that effort by the japanese to cease the war. Please try and argue the Question all this provides nothing to the argument of Russia handing the Islands over or not, you're an apologist and just trying to detract from the question. What ever happened in the end the Islands are controlled by Russia and the international community largely accepts that they are Russian
Seiharinokaze at 11:53 PM JST - 14th June

mummet

Japan had concluded a neutral treaty with the Soviets and was not in a state of war with her. It's the Soviets that broke the treaty and declared war on Japan. So, USSR entered the war with Japan, not vice versa. And the Kuriles were their loot taken by violence and greed.

What ever happened in the end the Islands are controlled by Russia and the international community largely accepts that they are Russian.

Sorry I don't know a person Kentaro Suzuki. But though I am not sure if Suzuki Kantaro's notorious "mokusatsu (黙殺)" of the Potsdam Declaration might not have been more aptly interpreted as "not deign to comment" instead of just "reject" or "ignore", I wonder why the efforts by the Japanese government to end the war behind the scenes through the mediation of the Soviets were rejected entirely.

Anyhow, we have yet to see what will happen in the end for the islands. Japan has not yet concluded a peace treaty with Russia who did not sign the San Francisco Peace Treaty either.
betepunap at 12:14 AM JST - 15th June

Japanese spam: send me 1000 dollars and I will sign peace treaty with you.
tempura at 12:53 AM JST - 15th June

Not only that, they have to return Sakhalin as well.