On Friday, Japanese Foreign Minister, Fumio Kishida, affirmed, in response to a question from a legislator, that Japan has lodged a protest against Russia’s deployment of anti-ship missiles in the southern Kurils. Japan’s Prime Minister Sindzo Abe expressed regret about the deployment of the Russian anti-ship missiles. Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier said that the placement of missile systems in the Kurils was a well-founded move and should not affect negotiations with Tokyo, including those on a future peace treaty. According to Maria Zakharova, Russian Foreign Minister’s spokeswoman, the deployment of the missile system Bastion in the southern Kuril islands is expected to strengthen the national security, so it would not be a threat to stability in the region.
