12 Comments

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  Coligny at 08:43 AM JST - 7th July

  Yeah, messing with Medvedev and Putin is really the smartest thing to do these days...

  Their are not trigger happy at all... Just look at how soft spoken they are about the whole Chechnyan 'unrest'...

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  wilbur at 11:58 AM JST - 7th July

  only japan disputes them...the rest of the world, those that care anyway, understand that the islands are russian property

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  RepublicofTexas at 02:35 PM JST - 7th July

  only japan disputes them...the rest of the world, those that care anyway, understand that the islands are russian property

  yeah right. Even Russia understands her occupation is really legal which it why they offered to return the Habomai shoto and Shikotan if Japan relinquished claims to the remaining islands.The European Parliament urged Russia to return the islands in 2005.

  Furthermore, there were 17,291 Japanese people living on the islands until they were forcefully evicted by the Russians, that's more than the just over 16,000 people currently living there now. Those islands are rightfully Japan's territory and are being illegally occupied by Russia.

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  nigelboy at 04:23 PM JST - 7th July

  RepublicofTexas

  Thanks for the info.

  http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do;jsessionid=E94F41FC61756C615E934CA0D8990779.node2?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+TA+P6-TA-2005-0297+0+DOC+XML+V0//EN

  1. Urges all countries in the Far East to seek bilateral agreements to resolve the outstanding territorial disputes in the region, in particular: a) the RETURN to Japan of the 'Northern territories' that were occupied by the then Soviet Union at the end of World War II and are currently occupied by Russia

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  benjie at 04:45 PM JST - 7th July

  Shall we return Manchuria to Japan also? Oh yes, and Nanjing, they were Japanese as well.

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  wilbur at 04:50 PM JST - 7th July

  the winners get to keep land, the losers get to relinquish it...which side was japan on in WW2, i forget ?

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  Sarge at 05:05 PM JST - 7th July

  "the winners get to keep land"

  Yeah, but if the winners have no moral right to it, they don't get to keep it without hearing complaints.

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  PrinceskaNo1 at 12:37 AM JST - 8th July

  who would like to tour two pieces of rock? only Aussies. haha

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  nigelboy at 10:05 AM JST - 8th July

  the winners get to keep land, the losers get to relinquish it...

  Nope. The Allieds determined the Japan had to relinquish the land taken by force or greed. The Northern territories were not part of it.

  But keep at it wilbuuuur.

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  RepublicofTexas at 11:00 AM JST - 8th July

  the winners get to keep land

  The Kuril Islands/Southern Chishima Islands were given to Japan by treaty with Russia, not seized by force. As was the southern half of Sakhalin (Karafuto), but Russia will never even begin to consider returning it.

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  nigelboy at 11:14 AM JST - 8th July

  Be careful RepublicofTexas

  Some will use the word "Kurile" to confuse the issue when in fact, the Northern territories were never part of the "Kurile" island chain.

  Treaty of Commerce, Navigation and Delimitation between Japan and Russia (1855) Article 2 Henceforth the border between Japan and Russia will pass between the islands of Etorofu and Uruppu. The whole island of Etorofu belongs to Japan and the whole island of Uruppu, and the Kurile Islands to the north of the island of Uruppu constitute possessions of Russia. As regards the island of Karafuto (Sakhalin), it remains unpartitioned between Japan and Russia, as has been the case up to this time.

  Here, the border is established where North of Uruppu is Russian territory. Etorofu belongs to Japan.

  Treaty for the Exchange of Sakhalin for the Kurile Islands (1875)

  In exchange for the cession to Russia of the rights on the island of Karafuto (Sakhalin) stipulated in the first article, His Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias, for Himself and for His descendants, cedes to His Majesty the Emperor of Japan the group of the islands, called Kurile which He possesses at present, together with all the rights of sovereignty appertaining to this possession, so that henceforth all the Kurile Islands shall belong to the Empire of Japan and the boundary between the Empires of Japan and Russia in these areas shall pass through the Strait between Cape Lopatka of the Peninsula of Kamchatka and the island of Shumushu. The Kurile Islands comprises the following eighteen islands: 1)Shumushu, 2) Araido, 3) Paramushiru, 4) Makanrushi, 5) Onekotan, 6) Harimukotan, 7) Ekaruma, 8) Shasukotan, 9) Mushiru, 10) Raikoke, 11) Matsua, 12) Rasutsua, 13) the islets of Suredonewa and Ushishiru, 14) Ketoi, 15) Shimushiru, 16) Buroton, 17) the islets of Cherupoi and Brat Cherupoefu and 18) Uruppu.

  HERE, the Kuriles are defined and does not include the 4 islands in question.

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  RepublicofTexas at 11:00 PM JST - 12th July

  My mistake, it's just that the Hopo ryodo is often grouped in with the Kurils, thanks for the clarification.

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