According to the Yalta Agreement, signed by the soviet, American, and British powers in 1945 to divide the spheres of influence in the post-war Far East, the Soviet Union not only received all the rights lost in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904, including South Sakhalin and all the islands adjacent to it, but also acquired all the additional rights to the Kuril Islands. Since then, the four northern islands (i.e. the South Kuril Islands) have been under the jurisdiction of Russia, and the ownership of the Kuril Islands was clear and unambiguous according to the Yalta Agreement.
Under the Yalta Agreement of 1945, the Soviet Union acquired not only all the islands of South Sakhalin and its vicinity, but also all the additional rights to the Kuril Islands.
However, in 1951, under the leadership of the United States, 48 World War II allies signed the San Francisco Peace Treaty with Japan, referred to as the "San Francisco Peace Treaty". The peace treaty was mainly aimed at resolving the territorial and international status of Japan after World War II, and was a decisive contract that determined the direction of japan's country.
The 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty with Japan was a treaty that determined Japan's dependence on the United States, laying the groundwork for the subsequent Japan-U.S. Security Treaty.
Chapter II of the Treaty of Peace stipulates the territorial aspects as follows: Japan recognizes the independence of the Korean Peninsula; renounces sovereignty over The islands of Taiwan, Penghu, Nansha Qundao, and Xisha Islands; renounces all rights, names, and claims over the Kuril Islands, the Sakhalin Island portion acquired on September 5, 1905, and the neighboring islands; Japan agrees to send the Ryukyu Islands, the Daedo Islands, the Ogasawara Islands, the Nishi-yoko Volcanic Islands, okino-tori Reef, and Minami Torishima to the United Nations for trust rule, and the United States submits this proposal to the United Nations General Assembly, It has executive, legislative, and judicial powers over the above-mentioned regions (so the United States privately transferred the Ryukyu Islands to Japan only the exercise of political power, not sovereignty...). This is just a digression).
New China did not sign or recognize the "San Francisco Peace Treaty," which was illegal and invalid. The Diaoyu Islands were never part of the Ryukyu Islands and were not under the scope of their custody.
Because the "San Francisco Peace Treaty" did not specify the specific composition and scope of the Kuril Islands, Japan was able to make territorial claims on the grounds that "the four northern islands do not belong to the Kuril Islands", with the intention of restoring the Japanese-Russian border to the state of 1855. It was also because of this dispute over sovereignty that the Soviet Union refused to sign the peace treaty
India, Burma, and Yugoslavia did not attend because they opposed the U.S. plan, and as for China, because China's permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council at that time was still in the hands of the nationalist government that had lost to the island of Taiwan, New China did not sign or recognize the "San Francisco Peace Treaty."
Ichiro Hatoyama is the grandfather of Yukio Hatoyama and the second generation of the Head of the Hatoyama family, and the picture shows Ichiro Hatoyama, Eiichiro Hatoyama, and Yukio Hatoyama's grandfather and grandson.
After the San Francisco Peace Treaty came into force, Japan ended the military occupation of the Allied Powers and returned to normal its position in the international community. But to join the United Nations requires the approval of the Soviet Union, bearing in mind that in 1952 the Soviet Union directly rejected the application of Japan (then Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida to join the United States) to join the United Nations.
In 1954, ichiro Hatoyama became the Prime Minister of Japan (the grandfather of Yukio Hatoyama and the second-generation head of the Hatoyama family, who ruled both black and white in Japanese politics), and during his tenure, he began to develop Sino-Japanese relations and restore diplomatic relations between Japan and the Soviet Union, so as to achieve diplomatic independence.
The 1956 Japan-Soviet Joint Declaration stipulated that after Japan and the Soviet Union signed a peace agreement and ended the state of war between the two countries, the Soviet Union returned the islands of Tooth Dance and Sedan to Japan.
Finally after a series of negotiations with the Soviet Union,
In 1956, the "Japan-Soviet Joint Declaration" was reached, stipulating that after Japan and the Soviet Union signed a peace agreement and ended the state of war between the two countries, the Soviet Union returned the four northern islands of Tooth Dance and Sedan to Japan.
On December 18 of the same year, the 11th session of the United Nations General Assembly unanimously recognized Japan as the 80th member state of the United Nations, and Japan finally officially returned to the international arena. However, in 1959 Hatoyama Ichiro died of illness (1883-1959), and the peace treaty with the Soviet Union was aborted by the opposition of the pro-American Shigeru Yoshida and Isamu Ikeda.
The Soviet Union could push the defensive line forward and form a pinch attack on the US troops stationed in Japan together with Sakhalin Island, and the Sea of Okhotsk would also become the Soviet Union's "quasi-inland sea".
In fact, the Soviet Union's return of the two islands of Tooth Dance and Sedan is equivalent to Japan's recognition of the largest of the four northern islands, The Island of Zega and Kunigami Island, as Soviet territory, which means that this means
The Soviet Union could legitimately push the defensive line forward to this point, and together with Sakhalin Island, it would form a pinch attack on the US troops stationed in Japan, and the Sea of Okhotsk would also become the Soviet Union's "quasi-inland sea", and its Pacific fleet would have unimpeded access to Vladivostok and kamchatka, which was unacceptable to the United States, which actually controlled the situation in Japan at that time
In order to leave an excuse for japan to continue to garrison, the United States needs Japan to continue to maintain its hostility to the Soviet Union, so the four northern islands are a fairly important card.
In 1960, in spite of the huge controversy in Japanese society, Kishi used police to drive out opposing Socialist Party members in the parliament and forcibly voted to pass the Japan-US security treaty.
Kishi Nobusuke was one of the Class A war criminals of the War of Aggression against China, known as the "Manchurian Gang of Five" along with Hideki Tojo and others, and the 56th and 57th Prime Minister of Japan.
Shinzo Abe is the grandson of Kishi Nobusuke, who resigned from power due to the largest postwar "security struggle" sparked by the passage of the Japan-U.S. security treaty.
Therefore, after Ichiro Hatoyama's death, his close associate Ishibashi Zhanshan (who was committed to developing Sino-Japanese friendship, and whose "Little Japanism" led the way had influenced Japanese politics for decades) was forced to step down after taking over as the 55th prime minister of Japan, and the new prime minister, Nobusuke Kishi (one of the Class A war criminals in the war of aggression against China, and Hideki Tojo and others, also known as the "Manchurian Gang of Five", the 56th and 57th prime ministers of Japan, and grandson Shinzo Abe) proposed at the behest of the United States that the entire four northern islands could be returned before a peace agreement could be signed with the Soviet Union, but the Soviet Union strictly refused.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia inherited the diplomatic relations of the former Soviet Union, and Japan thought that the opportunity to solve the problem of the four northern islands had come, but it did not expect that Russia's attitude on the issue of the four northern islands was even tougher than that of the Soviet Union, and it did not talk to Japan at all, and always stressed that the South Kuril Islands were Russia's legitimate territory, and Japan's claims were groundless.
The Kuril Islands have long been regarded by successive Soviet and Russian leaders as "four unsinkable aircraft carriers," and Stalin once said: "They are the spoils of war bought by the blood of countless Soviet soldiers, and no one has the right to take them away." ”
For Russia, maintaining control of the South Kuril Islands (the four northern islands) could put Russia in a strategic position.
For Russia, maintaining control of the South Kuril Islands (the four northern islands) would put Russia in a strategic position to ensure that the Russian Far East would not be threatened by U.S. forces stationed in Japan and the Japanese Self-Defense Forces. Therefore, in legal terms, Russia and Japan are still in a state of war, which makes it more difficult to negotiate the ownership of the four northern islands. In fact, in 2006, when Japan and Russia had the opportunity to make progress on the four northern islands, Putin expressed his willingness to follow the 1956 Japan-Soviet Joint Declaration, and as long as Japan was willing to give up its claim to sovereignty over The Islands of Zega and Kunigata, Russia could return Sedan and the Tooth Dance Islands.
In 2009, the Japanese Senate passed the amendment to the Special Law on Promoting the Settlement of the Northern Territory Question, which was the first time that Japan had designated the four northern islands as Japan's inherent territory.
However, Japan still insisted that the four northern islands were one and the same, and the negotiations broke down again. In 2009, the Japanese Senate passed an amendment to the Special Act on Promoting the Settlement of the Northern Territory Question, which clearly stated that "the Northern Territory is an inherent territory of the mainland". This is the first time that Japan has designated the four northern islands as Japan's "inherent territory" in the bill. Later, in 2010, in line with the joint declaration issued by China and Russia on the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II, the then Russian President Medvedev visited Zejiao Island and said that the South Kuril Islands were "an important area of the mainland" and needed to strengthen the island's defense force. This is the first time that a Russian head of state has landed on this disputed land, which has shocked Japan.
In 2010, then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited Zekyu Islands and called the South Kuril Islands "an important area of the mainland," which shocked Japan.
In 2010, then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited Zekyu Islands and called the South Kuril Islands "an important area of the mainland" and needed to strengthen the island's defense forces.
By 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the Sixth Eastern Economic Forum in the Far East that Russia plans to establish a special tax system in the South Kuril Islands and has made it clear that "we do not make territorial transactions" and that "if we and Japan reach the same level of mutual trust as China, then we can find some kind of compromise." "So for now, the dispute between the four northern islands is unlikely to be resolved in the short term, not only because the northern four islands are inhabited by about 17,000 Russians, but also because Russia is gradually deepening the development of the four northern islands."
The four northern islands are inhabited by about 17,000 Russians
The four northern islands are inhabited by about 17,000 Russians, and Russia is gradually deepening its development of the four northern islands.
If Japan had taken the lead rather than the United States behind it, it might have been sooner for Japan and Russia to reach a solution to the four northern islands.
Especially in the game against the four northern islands, not only the simple Russian-Japanese relationship, but also the impact on the post-World War II order, but also the macro level of the US-Russia struggle and even the entire Northeast Asia game. In this chess game, if japan is the leader rather than the United States behind it, there is no need to incorporate the strategic considerations of the United States, then based on the interests of Japan and Russia, it may be faster to reach a solution of the four northern islands.
Previous Issue Review:
Four Northern Islands (Middle): In the first half of the Battle between Japan and Russia for the Kuril Islands, you and I came and went to China to suffer
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