Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) share a laugh at the headquarters of the worldwide judo community, the Kodokan Judo Institute. Reportedly, better relations between Russia and Japan was the deathbed wish of Abe's father, former Japanese Foreign Minister Shintaro Abe.
As the spotlight shines on the Asia-Pacific theater, Japan is putting aside one of its longest running disputes to revisit its relationship with Russia . For the past 70 years, the Kuril Islands have been a cornerstone of talks between Tokyo and Moscow, and a stumbling block to reconciliation. Russia's humiliating defeat in its 1904-05 war with Japan cost Moscow half the resource-rich Sakhalin Island, as well as the still-disputed Southern Kuril Islands. The territorial loss corked the Russian navy in the Sea of Japan, limiting the fleet's access to the greater Pacific Ocean. After World War II, the Soviets took back not only Sakhalin, but also the Northern Kuril Islands. After more than a century of rivalry, the two nations have been repeatedly frustrated in their attempts to reconcile.
