Japan's Ambassador to Russia Masaharu Kono was on Tuesday “ordered” to come back home for consultations amid a diplomatic row over the ownership of four islands, controlled by Moscow and claimed by Tokyo since the end of the Second World War.
The dispute flared up following Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's publicised visit on Monday to these islands, known as North Territories in Japan and Southern Kurils in Russia. No Russian or Soviet leader had gone there before.
Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara refused to characterise the move as a diplomatic recall in protest.
Japanese spokesman Hidenobu Sobashima told The Hindu from Tokyo that Japan's concern and protest were already conveyed to the Russian envoy, Bely Mikhailovich. Mr. Maehara told the envoy that the Russian leader's action “is not compatible with the basic position of the Government of Japan”. Mr. Medvedev had, in fact, “hurt the national sentiments of the Japanese people”.
Vladimir Radyuhin reports from Moscow:
As Japan recalled its Ambassador, Moscow shrugged it off as a non-event.
Tokyo on Tuesday said it was temporarily bringing its ambassador to Moscow back to Japan to discuss the situation arising out of Mr. Medvedev's visit on Monday to Kunashir, one of four islands in the Kuril archipelago claimed by Japan. It did not say how long he would stay away from Moscow. For its part, Moscow played it cool. A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry said Moscow “sees no problem” in the Japanese government summoning its envoy for a report.
The Kremlin said the spat did not change Mr. Medvedev's plans to visit Japan for a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum on November 13-14. A Kremlin source told the RIA Novosti news agency that Moscow “sees no obstacles to a bilateral meeting with the Japanese Prime Minister” on the sidelines of the APEC summit.
