Japan opens fire without warning near Russian border

According to RIA Novosti, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on May 25 that the Japanese coast guard opened fire without warning near Russia's Kunashir Island during a shooting exercise.

"On May 23, the Nemuro Coast Guard in Hokkaido said the crew of the patrol ship Kawagiri made a mistake by conducting a machine gun drill off the coast of Cape Shiretoko without issuing a navigational warning to nearby ships," the Yomiuri newspaper reported.

According to the publication, the Japanese ship fired 66 rounds from its 13mm machine gun before the regional coast guard command realized that the corresponding warning had not been given and ordered a ceasefire. The incident lasted about 53 minutes.

The 1st Regional Command and other agencies are investigating the cause of the incident; there are also no reports of vessels passing nearby or damage. There has also been no statement from the Russian side.

To the east of the said area is Russia's Kunashir Island.

Relations between Russia and Japan have been strained for years due to the lack of a peace treaty following the end of World War II. The main stumbling block is the issue of the Southern Kuril Islands. Tokyo claims sovereignty over Kunashir, Shikotan, Iturup and Habomai islands, citing the 1855 Trade and Boundary Treaty.

The Russian side asserts that the islands became part of the Soviet Union after the war and that sovereignty over them is unquestioned.

In 1956, the Soviet Union and Japan signed a Joint Declaration. Moscow agreed to consider the possibility of transferring the Habomai and Shikotan islands to Tokyo after the conclusion of a peace treaty. The fate of Kunashir and Iturup remained unaffected.

The Soviet Union hoped that this declaration would end the dispute, while Japan considered the document only a partial solution to the problem and did not renounce its claims to all the islands. Subsequent negotiations failed to reach a common consensus.

Russia refused to engage in dialogue on the issue after Japan imposed sanctions on Moscow over its military operation in Ukraine. Russia also suspended visa-free travel for Japanese to the Southern Kuril Islands and withdrew from talks on establishing joint economic activities on the islands.