Russia would never have found consensus with Japan on the Kuriles, Medvedev said

Kuril Islands . File photoMOSCOW, Mar 22Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev called the refusal to discuss a peace treaty with Japan «historically justified, overdue and fair» in the context of the fate of the Kuril Islands. He also said that Russia would never have found a consensus on the island issue with Japan. «Russia refused to discuss a peace treaty with Japan «In the context of the fate of the Kuril Islands, this decision is historically justified, overdue and fair. It is obvious that we would never have found any consensus with the Japanese on the island topic. Both we and they understood this before. So the negotiations about the Kuril Islands have always been ritual character,” Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel. “The new version of the Russian Constitution expressly states that the territories of our country are not subject to alienation. The issue is closed,” he added.The Embassy of Japan called Russia's refusal from peace talks regrettableMedvedev also noted that the negotiations had lost their meaning, since Japan, having imposed sanctions against Russia after the United States, demonstrated with whom it would coordinate the text of the document. “Introduced sanctions against us, which finally demonstrated with whom they would coordinate the hypothetical text of the peace treaty. Now these negotiations have lost all meaning. And okay,” Medvedev wrote. According to him, now Russia needs to persistently develop the Kuriles. «In recent years, we have breathed new life into them. I have repeatedly visited our islands, made decisions about their support, I have seen real changes for the better — from schools to roads and airports. But more importantly, it is seen by the people living there. It will be and henceforth!» — Medvedev noted. The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday that Moscow, as a response to Tokyo's unfriendly steps, refuses to negotiate a peace treaty with Japan, stops visa-free trips of Japanese citizens to the southern Kuril Islands, and withdraws from dialogue with Japan on establishing joint economic activities in the southern Kuriles. The Japanese Embassy in Moscow called this decision regrettable and unacceptable.