Russian Ambassador to Japan: Russia-Japan relations have entered an "ice age"

On May 9, people celebrated Victory Day in the Russian-controlled Donetsk region of Ukraine during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. (AFP)

Russian Ambassador to Japan Nozdylev said that Russian-Japanese relations have entered an "ice age" and bilateral relations are experiencing an unprecedented decline since World War II.

RIA Novosti reported on Monday (May 11) that Nozdylev said the reason for the current state of Russia-Japan relations is that Japan supports sanctions against Russia and follows the anti-Russian line of Western countries, and Japan's policies have caused the achievements of bilateral relations to be lost.

Negotiations surrounding a peace treaty between Russia and Japan have been suspended since the Japanese government imposed sanctions on Russia in 2022, citing the Ukraine crisis. Russia and Japan have not concluded a peace treaty since the end of World War II due to a dispute over the ownership of the Southern Kuril Islands (known as the Northern Territories in Japan).

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022 , triggering the largest military conflict in Europe since World War II.　

Source: [Lianhe Zaobao] (https://www.zaobao.com/news/world/story20260511-9028995)