JAPAN, RUSSIA, THE KURILES, AND THE CRIMEA: IS JAPAN SENDING MESSAGES?

This very important article was shared by Ms. A.S., and it's a jaw dropper. It consists of an interview conducted by RT's Sophia Shervanadze, a relation of the former Soviet Foreign Minister under Mikhail Gorbachev, Eduard Shervanadze, with Japanese foreign policy mandarin and former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. While there's much food for thought here, a couple of things leaped out at me. Here's the RT article and transcript of the interview:

Stationing American troops in Japan will lead to bloody tragedy – ex-PM of Japan

At the center of the speculations being advanced by Mr. Hatoyama are, of course, the long-standing issue of the Russian occupation of the Kurile islands at the end of the Second World War, and Japan's consistent - until now, at least - position that it did not recognize the occupation. It should be stressed, of course, that Mr. Hatoyama does not speak for the Abe Government, but nonetheless, it is difficult to ignore the possibility that Mr. Hatoyama may be sending informal messages in his "unofficial capacity":

Sophie Shevardnadze: 60 years ago Moscow has offered to give two of the four Kuril islands to Tokyo - Shikotan and Habomai. But Japan demanded all four islands, and its position hasn’t changed since. For Japanese politicians to give up the claims on all four islands - will that be political suicide?

Yukio Hatoyama: Now, looking at the situation 60 years later we have to admit that we need to give up claims on all four islands. We need to resume talks about the two islands – Habomai and Shikotan – if we want to have any chance of coming to an agreement.

If the Japanese government keeps insisting on discussing all four islands this will not result in any positive outcome whatsoever. So it would make sense to start with talking about Habomai and Shikotan and leave the other two islands up for further discussions.

Further down, Mr. Hatoyama suggests one way of resolving the issue: create an economic free zone, with Russia retaining sovereignty but in such a way that both Russian and Japanese populations are allowed to coexist in essentially a free market zone:

SS: The Yomiuri newspaper reports that Japan is ready to create a special economic zone under the Russian administration on Iturup and Kunashir - it’ll be a visa-free, common economic space. Is that the breakthrough that the Japanese Prime Minister is talking about?

YH: I can’t speak for Prime Minister Abe because I am not a member of his government at this point. But I would welcome this step – creating common economic space on the islands as a way of settling the issue, which is what Yomiuri was talking about. But I don’t know for sure what Prime Minister Abe brings to the negotiations table.

Now, before we continue with this interview, let's pause to take stock of the potential "high octane speculative" implications here: such a zone we've seen before; indeed the BRICSA bloc countries, and in particular Russia, China, and India, have negotiated similar bi-lateral arrangements before: India recently negotiated with Iran to settle all payments in Indian rupees, by-passing the US dollar entirely.  China and Russia have similar arrangements for the yuan and the ruble, again, by-passing the US dollar completely. It therefore would not surprise me that if Mr Hatoyama is, as the article suggests, still "in the know," then the Japanese and Russians might be considering a similar measure for the Kuriles: with bilateral payments in yen and rubles. This makes sense from both the Japanese and Russian points of view, particularly if Japan accepts Moscow's 1960s offer of the return of two of the islands, in return for such a zone on the other two. Such an agreement would be a "camel's nose in the tent," for as I've argued in previous blogs, a Russo-Japanese accord benefits both countries: Japan's energy needs can be supplied by the development of Siberian energy fields, and results in a much shorter supply line than its current ones through - let it be noted - the South China Sea. Russia in turn can tap into the enormous pool of Japanese technology and infrastructure development capability, and into Japanese money. A bi-lateral free-trade and currency zone could be a first step to a much wider such arrangement between the yen and the ruble for all of Siberia.

With that in mind, consider this bombshell:

SS: Well, I’m interested in your personal opinion. I understand that you do not represent the government at this point, but you’re someone who’s in the know about this. What do you think, can the prime minister achieve a breakthrough in negotiations with this position?

YH: I think that the prime minister should strive to achieve this breakthrough. But the Russian public would not support the idea of returning even some of the Kuril Islands, because the patriotic spirit is on the rise in Russia after bringing Crimea back.

But I sense that despite this situation President Putin still wants to settle the Kuril issue and I think his decisions will be supported by the people.

In my opinion, we need to create a situation that would allow us to move forward – we need to be walking towards each other. It is possible to reach a compromise on the Kunashir and Iturup issue. Common economic space and joint Russia-Japan governance come to mind as possible solutions. That is my personal opinion. I would really like to see this breakthrough.

SS: As one of the options, is it possible that Japan recognises Russia’s acquisition of Crimea - in exchange to the transfer of Kuril islands to Japan? Can Japan go against the G7’s stance on Crimea for the sake of the return of the Kuril islands?

YH: I doubt that the Abe administration would be brave enough to take that step at this point. If you ask me I think that historically Crimea has been Russian territory. Under Khrushchev it was given to Ukraine – with total disregard of international law. That’s how the Crimea issue began. Now the international community should recognize the peninsula as part of Russia. If Japan did that and recognized Crimea as Russian territory it could encourage European countries to follow suit.

And that in turn could make President Putin more inclined to meet some of Tokyo’s demands and move forward on the Kuril Islands issue. Russia might even satisfy Japan’s claims on all four islands. Of course this is just conjecture, and unfortunately at this point the Abe government is not ready to recognize Crimea as part of Russia. However such step would boost the Russia-Japan relations tremendously.

SS: You went to Crimea last year. You said then that Crimea becoming part of Russia is the expression of the actual will of the Crimean people. You’ve been eaten alive by the Japanese press for that - why was your point of view met with such hostility, is it only because it’s different from the G7’s point of view?

YH: The Japanese media and government cannot navigate away from the Cold War attitudes, and whenever there is a disagreement between Russia and the US they always take America’ side. Tokyo remains dependent on the US’s views. This means that when it comes to Crimea Japan will continue to side with America and the G7 countries and claim that it was Russian annexation of the peninsula in violation of international law.

While Mr. Hatoyama makes it expressly clear in his responses to Ms. Shervanadze's questions about the Crimea, that Japan will "always" take the USA's position in the matter, one wonders if by merely mentioning the possibility in response to Ms. Shervanadze's questions, he might be indicating that quietly, behind closed doors, the issue has already been raised between Moscow and Tokyo. Hotyama's response is curiously ambiguous: on the one hand, he indicates Mr. Abe's government would have to be "brave enough" to take the step, and that he doubts it will do so. Yet, on the other hand, he does indicate that "historically (the) Crimea has been Russian territory," and points out Krushchev's actions that made it a part of The Ukraine. This, in my opinion, could be a way for Tokyo to signal to Moscow that, unofficially, it recognizes the Russian position.

While this means we're still a long way off from seeing a formal end to World War Two between the two powers, it does mean that we can expect some progress to be announced at the upcoming summit between Mr. Abe and Mr. Putin when the latter visits Tokyo in a few weeks. This is a development to watch closely.

See you on the flip side...

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Joseph P. Farrell

Joseph P. Farrell has a doctorate in patristics from the University of Oxford, and pursues research in physics, alternative history and science, and "strange stuff". His book The Giza DeathStar, for which the Giza Community is named, was published in the spring of 2002, and was his first venture into "alternative history and science".

14 Comments

  1. Terry Larson on November 15, 2016 at 8:29 am

    Japan’s dreams about the Kuril Islands will always be dreams because Japan lost the islands when it agreed to join the Axis and finally lost the islands when Russians established control over them in 1945. I see no reasons why Russians will cede the islands to Japan. Tokyo is responsible for its fault and loss of the islands so why do they blame Russians for that? I think they should stop their attempts to change history.



  2. hullabaloo on November 15, 2016 at 8:22 am

    There is no parallel between Crimea and Kuril islands. Japan lost the last ones because it was defeated in WW II. It’s time for Japanese to learn how to take a loss. Never heard about anyone would return trophy territories just at the whim of the lost side. Why should anyone rewrite the outcome of the war just to please Japanese territorial ambitions?



  3. WalkingDead on November 12, 2016 at 10:12 am

    Off topic post.
    So you believe it’s over and Trump won, eh. Clinton supporters petition to force Electoral College to vote for her December 19.
    https://www.rt.com/news/366651-clinton-december-petition-president/



    • Kahlypso on November 14, 2016 at 9:35 am

      “Even in states where that is not allowed, their vote would still be counted, they would simply pay a small fine -”

      HA HA HA HA HA HA.. The Clinton Perogative.
      Since when did they bother about following the ‘rules’



  4. Vomito Blanco on November 12, 2016 at 8:16 am

    I wonder if South Korea is getting a little bit too independent lately? I haven’t scrutinized the details too much but on the surface it appears to be the usual western oligarchical tactics to keep them from straying off the reservation:
    –huge lawsuits against there largest business Samsung
    –political scandal to remove leader from power
    –color revolution on the streets this morning



  5. goshawks on November 12, 2016 at 12:01 am

    From a ‘realpolitik’ standpoint, Russia does not want anything to do with the four Kurile islands except for defensive-bases and a share in future gas/oil/mineral discoveries in the area. If given these ‘concessions’ by the Japanese, it would suit both parties to return the islands to Japanese jurisdiction. A win-win situation…

    With that mutual ‘trust-building’ move, I could see the Japanese making billions in Siberian ventures. Win-win, again…



  6. Robert Barricklow on November 11, 2016 at 5:31 pm

    Frankly, I’ve yet to see a Free-Market Zone.
    At least, in the Adam Smith’s sense of one.



  7. Sandygirl on November 11, 2016 at 2:19 pm

    Tokyo Electric Power says if you build it, we will buy it – 1.5 million tonnes of natural gas for 20 years. FERC is being pressured to approve the 7.5 billion dollar Jordon Cove LNG facility and 232 miles of pipe lines in Oregon. Of course the tax payers will end up footing the bill, higher gas bills and environmental damage. http://www.naturalgasintel.com/articles/108005-japanese-energy-buyer-urges-ferc-to-reconsider-jordan-cove-lng-project



  8. marcos toledo on November 11, 2016 at 10:19 am

    I watch the interview on RT the Kurile Islands dispute along with the ending of the Korean War . Would begin the long overdue process of bringing peace to that area that hasn’t had in nearly a century. The CSA is like a small child that goes around creating chaos to get attention and importance to itself. Russia and Japan are adult enough to figure out among themselves how to settle this dispute.



  9. Vomito Blanco on November 11, 2016 at 9:37 am

    What Trump needs to guarantee is that both allies and former adversaries except the US dollar as the world reserve currency until that time when the US is no longer on the precipice of financial calamity. (At that point the civilized world can agree upon some new kind of world currency backed by asteroid mineral wealth, robot labor units, or whatever.) With this guarantee I am sure President Trump will be amenable to all kinds of sensible new arrangements and reassessments of old strategies. Officially conceding that Crimea is part of Russia would go a long way in gaining the goodwill of Russia and preventing a covert war on our dollar and precarious financial position. It would be so easy for the Russians and the rest of the world to sit back and watch the US slowly implode, but Putin wisely realizes that that makes the world a much more dangerous place. When the dust settles and the US civil unrest is over, who can guarantee who will have control of the nuclear arsenal? Uber patriot Erik Prince and the special forces? Or some diabolical and merciless, neo-Hillary-ite social justice warrior who rose to power on the corpses of millions of deplorables?

    The disturbing news I heard yesterday was that neo-con imp John Bolton is on the short list for Secretary of State. Exactly what Trump and the US do not need.



    • Vomito Blanco on November 11, 2016 at 10:11 am

      At the end of the day, the Kurile Islands are conquered territory, just like Okinawa. Neither the US nor the Russians spurred the Japanese to attempt to carve out a giant Asian Empire using their military might. If the Japanese wants those Islands back, they should either fight for them or buy them back. They should consider it lost territory. Are the Chinese asking for Okinawa back, even though they claim it is their ancient land? Perhaps it is the manifest destiny of Russia to reclaim the Kurile Islands considering the majority of the island’s inhabitants were caucasian up until the 20th Century? Not to mention all those Russian casualties at the Battle of Manchuria who should have some conquered land to show for their sacrifice.

      Now if Trump wants to apologize to Japan for the Fukushima attack and hand over Okinawa in compensation, that is another story entirely. This could be pretty sticky and it would be better that he did not go there. It was so sneaky it is virtually unforgivable. Besides, we would never hear the end of it from the victimhood establishment. It would be the new genocide that America is responsible for. Every Japanese cancer victim and dead fish in the Pacific will be the responsibility of the US. Moreover, every Japanese-American college student who vehemently distances themselves now from the atrocities carried out by their Japanese kinsmen in WWII, will now demand reparations for the psychological damage done to them by the US government when it Fukishima-d Japan. And when Obama returns to the Oval Office for his third term as the first transgender President, skirting the legal restrictions on account of his gender change, you can almost guarantee he will hand over Hawaii to the Japanese as recompense for the Fukushima attack.



      • goshawks on November 12, 2016 at 12:58 am

        Actually, Israel (the Mossad) should apologize to the Japanese for Fukushima, and pay compensation. The banksters were more behind it than the neocons. Look up J. Stone’s analysis of the events at his site, and you will get a better view of the real perpetrators…



  10. WalkingDead on November 11, 2016 at 8:10 am

    I believe, at this point, it is safe to say that Amerikan unipolarism was never intended to work. It has been a means to an end and its usefulness is now at an end. Amerika has been slowly dismantled as the sole superpower by the globalists through trade agreements thus sending the bulk of its manufacturing to the four winds and gutting its economy and leaving it a hollow shell of what it once was. More people are working in the government now than in the manufacturing sector. The majority of the population is now dependent on the government for its income, meager as that is allowed to be by intent. Its once great manufacturing cities now battlegrounds of disenfranchised populations barely surviving on government subsidies. Our largest export now being war and the equipment used to fight them, the quality of which has slowly deteriorated, the F-35 and newest naval vessels being the rule rather than the exception.
    The world is more than ready for a change and the now unpopular unipolar world is being abandoned for the new multipolar world. It’s the same old meme of problem, reaction, solution. The goal has never been changed, just the method for bringing it about. The best method for accomplishing something is to have others believe it is their idea so they accomplish it for you. In the long run its a faster and more reliable method of accomplishing your goal.



    • peter moline on November 12, 2016 at 9:10 pm

      Good call WalkingDead, this whole Trump, nationalism, America first meme is all about the USA playing a different role in the world. The fact of the mater is with the addition of the Chinese Yuan in to the international basket of currencies the USD now shares the reserve status and has lost the ability to just crank up the presses, so to speak. Bottom line is we simply can not afford to play the superstar anymore, and that opens the door for many layers of economic development for the entire world, including the good old USofA.
      PTM



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