Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara said Japan stands by its claim to the islands in the southern Kuril chain that were occupied in the closing days of World War II by the Soviet army. The dispute has kept the two nations from signing a peace treaty to formally end their World War II hostilities.
"Whether Russia sends its leaders there or boosts its defenses, it still has no claim under international law to occupy the islands," he said.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev traveled to the island's last year — becoming the first Russian or Soviet leader ever to do so. He has stressed that he sees the islands as Russian territory.
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