OREANDA-NEWS. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President, commented on the Japanese government’s protest over geological exploration in the Kuril Islands. According to the Kremlin, Russia has the right to conduct any research on its territory. “In this case, Russia has an absolutely sovereign right to carry out any kind of research on its territory,” Peskov said.

Earlier, the Japanese government made representations to Russia due to geological exploration in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk near the Kuril Islands. The authorities considered it “unacceptable.”

The issue of ownership of the southern Kuril Islands is the main obstacle to the signing of a peace treaty between Russia and Japan. It has remained unsigned since the end of the Second World War. In 2019, Moscoq and Tokyo agreed on joint economic activities in the disputed territories.