Japan Describes Southern Kurils as Occupied Areas for First Time Since 2003 – Reports

TOKYO (Sputnik) - The Japanese government has described the Southern Kuril islands, known in Japan as the Northern Territories, as the area illegally occupied by Russia in its Diplomatic Bluebook for the first time since 2003, media reported on Friday.

The Southern Kurils are also described as an inherent part of Japan for the first time since 2011, the Kyodo news agency reported. The Diplomatic Bluebook was presented by the Foreign Ministry to the government on Friday.

The move follows the Russian decision on refusing to negotiate a peace treaty with Japan, halting visa-free travel for Japanese citizens to the Southern Kuril Islands, and withdrawing from dialogue with Japan on establishing joint economic activities on the archipelago.

The Russian steps, in turn, were made in response to the Japanese government's decision to join the harsh sanctions against Moscow over its military operation in Ukraine.

Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine on February 24 to support the people's republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. The Western countries have strongly condemned the operation calling it an invasion and imposed harsh sanctions on Russia.