Russia conducts missile tests near the Kuril Islands, amid the dispute with Japan

The dispute between Moscow and Tokyo over the Kuril Islands, territories that Russia annexed at the end of World War II and whose sovereignty Japan claims, has no signs of being resolved. Quite the opposite. On Thursday, the Russian Pacific Fleet conducted missile tests near the archipelago, as part of unusual military maneuvers. The maneuvers, confirmed by the Ministry of Defense through its Telegram channel, come just a week after President Vladimir Putin traveled to the area for the first time, which led the Asian country to summon the Russian ambassador in Tokyo in protest at what happened. [...] Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi insisted that their presence on the islands “hurts the feelings of the Japanese people and is absolutely unacceptable.”