Russia holding exercises off Japan’s coast

Japan Security Watch ^ | 7/14/2010 | Kyle Mizokami

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

One of the problems of living at the gateway to Asia is that anyone who lives in Asia, well, has to go through the gate. Such is Japan’s problem lately, with China and now Russia holding exercises and transiting ships near its borders. Anyone who lives in a large apartment building directly above the garage can probably sympathize.

Russia conducted a military drill last weekend on Etorofu, one of four Russian-held islands off Hokkaido claimed by Japan, despite a request by Tokyo not to do so.

A press officer in the military’s Far East district said Saturday-Sunday drill was “the largest-scale exercise held on the disputed islands since the collapse of the Soviet Union” in 1991.

It immediately drew criticism from Japan, with Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada expressing “deep regret” over the military exercise. (Link)

It seems like Okada has been issuing a lot of “deep regret” statements lately.

Japan and Russia just agreed to enter talks over the future of the Kurils, or the “Northern Territories”, as Japan calls them. One could interpret this as a sign from Moscow that while it may be willing to talk and ultimately give up the islands, they won’t come cheap.

According to an announcement dated Sunday by the Russian Defense Ministry, the drill on Etorofu Island was part of the Vostok 2010 strategic exercises in the Russian Far East and Siberia, which began June 29 and will continue through Thursday.

The drill on Etorofu involved about 1,500 soldiers and 200 military and special-purpose vehicles, it said.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

[Colonel Blimp]

Am I allowed to fantasize about a repeat of 1905? Despite the later unpleasantness between 1941 and 1945, it’s hard to read any account of the Russo-Japanese War without rooting for the samurai. Czarist Russia was monstrously corrupt and oppressive and deserved to be taken down. And it’s so like the Russians that 12 years later they traded a corrupt and oppressive regime for one that was 10 times worse.

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

Despite the later unpleasantness between 1941 and 1945

In 1939, The Soviet Union and Japan went to war in the battle of Khalkhin Gol.The Soviets and Japanese signed the cease-fire on September 15,1939 and it took effect the following day. The peace between the Soviet Union and Japan lasted until August 9,1945 until the Soviet invasion of Manchuria and the Kurile Islands. The Japanese lost severely during the battle and General Zhukov made his first appearance on the battlefield.

[artaxerces]

China sends it’s fleet near Okinawa, Russia sends it’s fleet nearHokkaido. Japan is kept in its place. Looks good to me.