Don't touch the Kuriles - ours. History of the Kuril Islands. Unknown Russia: Kuril Islands

There are territorial disputes in modern world. Only the Asia-Pacific region has several of these. The most serious of them is the territorial dispute over the Kuril Islands. Russia and Japan are its main participants. The situation on the islands, which are considered to be a kind of between these states, has the appearance of a dormant volcano. No one knows when he will start his "eruption".

Discovery of the Kuril Islands

The archipelago, located on the border between and the Pacific Ocean, is the Kuril Islands. It stretches from about. Hokkaido do Territory Kuril Islands consists of 30 large areas of land, surrounded on all sides by the waters of the sea and ocean, and a large number small ones.

The first expedition from Europe, which ended up near the shores of the Kuriles and Sakhalin, is dutch sailors under the direction of M. G. Friz. This event took place in 1634. They not only made the discovery of these lands, but also proclaimed them as Dutch territory.

The explorers of the Russian Empire also studied Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands:

• 1646 - discovery of the northwestern Sakhalin coast by the expedition of V. D. Poyarkov;
• 1697 - VV Atlasov becomes aware of the existence of the islands.

At the same time, Japanese sailors began to sail to the southern islands of the archipelago. By the end of the 18th century, their trading posts and fishing trips appeared here, and a little later - scientific expeditions. A special role in the research belongs to M. Tokunai and M. Rinzō. Around the same time, an expedition from France and England appeared on the Kuril Islands.

Island discovery problem

The history of the Kuril Islands has still preserved discussions about the issue of their discovery. The Japanese claim that they were the first to find these lands in 1644. National Museum Japanese history carefully keeps a map of that time, on which the corresponding designations are applied. According to them, Russian people appeared there a little later, in 1711. In addition, the Russian map of this area, dated 1721, designates it as "Japanese Islands." That is, Japan was the discoverer of these lands.

The Kuril Islands in Russian history were first mentioned in the reporting document of N. I. Kolobov to Tsar Alexei of 1646 on the peculiarities of wanderings. Also, data from chronicles and maps of medieval Holland, Scandinavia and Germany testify to indigenous Russian villages.

By the end of the 18th century, they were officially annexed to the Russian lands, and the population of the Kuril Islands acquired Russian citizenship. At the same time, state taxes began to be collected here. But neither then, nor a little later, was any bilateral Russian-Japanese treaty or international agreement signed that would secure Russia's rights to these islands. In addition, their southern part was not under the power and control of the Russians.

The Kuril Islands and relations between Russia and Japan

The history of the Kuril Islands in the early 1840s is characterized by the intensification of the activities of English, American and French expeditions in the northwest. Pacific Ocean. This is the reason for a new surge of Russia's interest in establishing diplomatic and commercial relations with the Japanese side. Vice Admiral E. V. Putyatin in 1843 initiated the idea of ​​equipment new expedition into Japanese and Chinese territory. But it was rejected by Nicholas I.

Later, in 1844, I.F. Kruzenshtern supported him. But this did not receive the support of the emperor.

During this period, the Russian-American company took active steps to establish good relations with the neighboring country.

First treaty between Japan and Russia

The problem of the Kuril Islands was resolved in 1855, when Japan and Russia signed the first treaty. Before that, a rather lengthy negotiation process took place. It began with the arrival of Putyatin in Shimoda at the end of the autumn of 1854. But soon the negotiations were interrupted by an intense earthquake. A rather serious complication was the support provided by the French and English rulers to the Turks.

The main provisions of the agreement:

• establishment of diplomatic relations between these countries;
• protection and patronage, as well as ensuring the inviolability of the property of citizens of one power in the territory of another;
• drawing a border between states located near the islands of Urup and Iturup Kuril archipelago(preservation of indivisible);
• the opening of some ports for Russian sailors, the permission to conduct trade here under the supervision of local officials;
• the appointment of a Russian consul in one of these ports;
• granting the right of extraterritoriality;
• receiving by Russia the status of the most favored nation.

Japan also received permission from Russia to trade in the port of Korsakov, located on the territory of Sakhalin, for 10 years. The country's consulate was established here. At the same time, any trade and customs duties were excluded.

Attitude of countries to the Treaty

A new stage, which includes the history of the Kuril Islands, is the signing of the Russian-Japanese treaty of 1875. It caused mixed reviews from representatives of these countries. Citizens of Japan believed that the country's government had done wrong by exchanging Sakhalin for "an insignificant ridge of pebbles" (as they called the Kuriles).

Others simply put forward statements about the exchange of one territory of the country for another. Most of them were inclined to think that sooner or later the day would come when the war did come to the Kuril Islands. The dispute between Russia and Japan will escalate into hostilities, and battles will begin between the two countries.

The Russian side assessed the situation in a similar way. Most representatives of this state believed that the entire territory belongs to them as discoverers. Therefore, the treaty of 1875 did not become the act that once and for all determined the delimitation between the countries. It also failed to be a means of preventing further conflicts between them.

Russo-Japanese War

The history of the Kuril Islands continues, and the next impetus to complication Russo-Japanese relations there was a war. It took place despite the existence of agreements concluded between these states. In 1904, Japan's treacherous attack on Russian territory took place. This happened before the start of hostilities was officially announced.

The Japanese fleet attacked the Russian ships that were in the outer roadstead of Port Artois. Thus, some of the most powerful ships belonging to the Russian squadron were disabled.

The most significant events of 1905:

• the largest land battle of Mukden in the history of mankind at that time, which took place on February 5-24 and ended with the withdrawal of the Russian army;
• The Tsushima battle at the end of May, which ended with the destruction of the Russian Baltic squadron.

Despite the fact that the course of events in this war was in the best possible way in favor of Japan, she was forced to enter into peace negotiations. This was due to the fact that the country's economy was very depleted by military events. On August 9, a peace conference between the participants in the war began in Portsmouth.

Reasons for Russia's defeat in the war

Despite the fact that the conclusion of the peace treaty determined to some extent the situation in which the Kuril Islands were, the dispute between Russia and Japan did not stop. This caused a significant number of protests in Tokyo, but the effects of the war were very tangible for the country.

During this conflict, the Russian Pacific Fleet was practically completely destroyed, more than 100 thousand of its soldiers were killed. There was also a stop to the expansion of the Russian state to the East. The results of the war were indisputable evidence of how weak the tsarist policy was.

This was one of the main reasons for the revolutionary actions in 1905-1907.

The most important reasons for the defeat of Russia in the war of 1904-1905.

1. The presence of diplomatic isolation of the Russian Empire.
2. The absolute unpreparedness of the country's troops to conduct combat acts in difficult situations.
3. The shameless betrayal of domestic stakeholders and the mediocrity of most Russian generals.
4. The high level of development and readiness of the military and economic spheres of Japan.

Until our time, the unresolved Kuril issue is great danger. After World War II, no peace treaty was signed following its results. From this dispute, the Russian people, like the population of the Kuril Islands, have absolutely no benefit. Moreover, this state of affairs contributes to the generation of hostility between countries. It is precisely the speedy resolution of such a diplomatic issue as the problem of the Kuril Islands that is the key to good neighborly relations between Russia and Japan.

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Good day, dear viewers! Today, after a short pause for the next collection of information, I want to send you on a mini-trip to the Kuriles)
I picked up the musical composition according to my own taste, if you don’t like it - as usual, stop in the player)

I wish you all a pleasant experience!
Let's go)

The next series of "Unknown Russia" is dedicated to the Kuriles, or the Kuril Islands - a stumbling block in Russian-Japanese relations.

The Kuril Islands are a chain of islands between the Kamchatka Peninsula and the island of Hokkaido, separating the Sea of ​​Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean in a convex arc. The length of the arc is about 1200 km. The archipelago includes 30 large and many small islands. The Kuril Islands are part of Sakhalin region.

The four southern islands - Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai - are disputed by Japan, which on its maps includes them as part of Hokkaido Prefecture and considers them "temporarily occupied."

There are 68 volcanoes on the Kuril Islands, 36 of which are active.

There is a permanent population only in Paramushir, Iturup, Kunashir and Shikotan.

Before the arrival of the Russians and the Japanese, the islands were inhabited by the Ainu. In their language, "kuru" meant "a person who came from nowhere." The word “kuru” turned out to be consonant with our “smoke” - after all, there is always smoke over volcanoes

In Russia, the first mention of the Kuril Islands dates back to 1646, when the traveler N.I. Kolobov spoke about the bearded Ainu inhabiting the islands. The first Russian settlements of that time are evidenced by Dutch, German and Scandinavian medieval chronicles and maps.

The Japanese first received information about the islands during an expedition to Hokkaido in 1635. It is not known whether she actually got to the Kuriles or learned about them indirectly from local residents, but in 1644 the Japanese compiled a map on which the Kurils were designated under the collective name "thousand islands".

Throughout the 18th century, the Russians intensively mastered the Kuriles. In 1779, Catherine II, by her decree, freed all the islanders who accepted Russian citizenship from all taxes.

In 1875, Russia and Japan agreed that the Kuriles belong to Japan, and Sakhalin to Russia, but after the defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1905, Russia transferred to Japan southern part Sakhalin.

In February 1945, the Soviet Union promised the United States and Great Britain to start a war with Japan on the condition that the southern part of Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands be returned to it. Japan, as you know, was defeated, the islands were returned to the USSR.

On September 8, 1951, Japan signed the San Francisco Peace Treaty, according to which it renounced "all rights, titles and claims to the Kuril Islands and to that part of Sakhalin Island and the islands adjacent to it, sovereignty over which Japan acquired under the Portsmouth Treaty of September 5, 1905 of the year". However, in view of many other serious shortcomings of the San Francisco Treaty, representatives of the USSR, Poland, Czechoslovakia and a number of other countries refused to sign it. This now gives Japan the formal right to assert its belated claim to the islands.

As you can see, there is no way to sort out the question of who should own the Kuril Islands. As long as they belong to us. In international law, they refer to the so-called "disputed territories".

Iturup

Most large island archipelago. It is located in its southern part. The population is about 6 thousand people. On Iturup is main city archipelago - Kurilsk. There are 9 active volcanoes on Iturup.

Kunashir Island

southernmost island Kuril ridge. The population is about 8 thousand people. The administrative center is the village of Yuzhno-Kurilsk. In Yuzhno-Kurilsk there is a monument-obelisk in honor of the liberation of the island, on which it is written: “Soviet troops landed in this area in September 1945. Historical justice was restored: the original Russian lands - the Kuril Islands - were liberated from the Japanese militarists and forever reunited with the Motherland - Russia.

There are 4 active volcanoes on the island and many thermal springs, which are places of relaxation. It is separated from Japan by only a 25-kilometer strait. The main attraction is Cape Stolbchaty, a fifty-meter rock, built of almost regular hexagons, tightly adjacent to each other in the form of rods.

(pink salmon spawning)

Shumshu Island

The northernmost of the Kuril Islands, during the Second World War was a powerful military fortress Japanese. A 20,000-strong garrison with tanks, pillboxes and airfields was based on it. The capture of Shumshu by Soviet troops was a decisive event in the course of the entire Kuril operation. Now there are remnants of Japanese technology lying around everywhere. Very picturesque.

That, in fact, is all for today!)
Thank you all for another portion of attention and interest in your country)
World!

What is interesting about the Kuril Islands and is it possible to organize a trip on your own? Who owns the Kuriles now: the essence of the Russia-Japan conflict.

The islands of the Sakhalin ridge, bordering Japan, are considered an oriental wonder of nature. Of course, we are talking about the Kuril Islands, whose history is as rich as nature. To begin with, it is worth saying that the struggle for 56 islands located between Kamchatka and Hokkaido began from the moment of discovery.

Kuril Islands on the map of Russia

Kuril Islands - pages of history

So, at the end of the 16th - beginning of the 17th century, when Russian navigators mapped hitherto unexplored lands that turned out to be inhabited, the process of appropriation of uninhabited territories began. At that time, the Kuril Islands were inhabited by a people called Ayans. The Russian authorities tried to attract these people into their citizenship by any means, not excluding force. As a result, the ayans, together with their lands, nevertheless went over to the side of the Russian Empire in exchange for the abolition of taxes.

The situation fundamentally did not suit the Japanese, who had their own views on these territories. Diplomatic methods failed to resolve the conflict. Eventually, according to a document dated 1855, the territory of the islands is considered undivided. The situation became clear only after the end of the Second World War, when amazing territory with a harsh climate was transferred to official ownership.

According to the new world order, the Kuril Islands passed into the possession of the Soviet Union - the victorious state. The Japanese, who fought on the side of the Nazis, had no chance.

Who actually owns the Kuril Islands?

Despite the results of the Second World War, which secured the USSR the right to own the Kuril Islands at the world level, Japan still claims the territory. So far, no peace treaty has been signed between the two countries.

What is happening now - in 2019?

Changing tactics Japan is coming compromise and is currently contesting Russia's ownership of only PART of the Kuril Islands. These are Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Khabomai group. At first glance, this is a small part of the Kuriles, because there are 56 units in the archipelago! One thing is confusing: Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan are the only Kuril Islands where there is a permanent population (about 18 thousand people). They are located closest to the Japanese "border".

The Japanese and world media, in turn, throw firewood into the firebox of the conflict, exaggerating the topic and convincing ordinary citizens of Japan that the Kuril Islands are vital to them and unfairly captured. When, by whom, at what moment - it does not matter. The main thing is to create as many potential hotbeds of conflict around one vast, but a little unlucky country. Suddenly you're lucky, and somewhere the case will "burn out"?

Representatives of the Russian Federation represented by the President and the Foreign Ministry remain calm. But they do not tire of reminding once again that we are talking about the territory of Russia, which belongs to it by right. Well, in the end, it does not make claims to Poland on Gdansk and - on Alsace and Lorraine 😉

Nature of the Kuril Islands

Not only the history of the development of the islands is interesting, but also their nature. In fact, each of the Kuril Islands is a volcano, and a good part of these volcanoes are currently active. Thanks to volcanic origin, the nature of the islands is so diverse, and the surrounding landscapes are a paradise for photographers and geologists.

Eruption of the Crimean volcano (Kuril Islands, Russia)

Local residents. Bears of the Kuril Islands.

There are many geothermal springs on the Kuril Islands, which form entire lakes with hot water rich in healthy micro and macro elements. The Kuril Islands are home to a huge number of animals and birds, many of which are found only in these parts. The plant world is also rich, represented for the most part by endemics.

Journey to the Kuril Islands 2019

According to its parameters, the territory of the Kuril Islands is perfect for traveling. And even if the climate is harsh, almost no sunny days, high humidity and abundance of precipitation - weather imperfections are covered by the beauty of nature and surprisingly clean air. So if you are worried about the weather on the Kuril Islands, then you can survive it.

In view of recent events, many inhabitants of the planet are interested in where the Kuril Islands are located, as well as to whom they belong. If there is still no concrete answer to the second question, then the first can be answered quite unambiguously. The Kuril Islands are a chain of islands approximately 1.2 kilometers long. It runs from the Kamchatka Peninsula to an island landmass called Hokkaido. A kind of convex arc, consisting of fifty-six islands, is located in two parallel lines, and also separates the Sea of ​​​​Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean. The total territorial area is 10,500 km 2. On the south side, the state border between Japan and Russia is stretched.

The lands in question are of inestimable economic and military-strategic importance. Most of them are considered part of the Russian Federation and belong to the Sakhalin region. However, the status of such components of the archipelago, including Shikotan, Kunashir, Iturup, and the Habomai group, is disputed by the Japanese authorities, which classifies the listed islands as part of the Hokkaido prefecture. Thus, you can find the Kuril Islands on the map of Russia, but Japan plans to legalize the ownership of some of them. These territories have their own characteristics. For example, the entire archipelago belongs to Far North when looking at legal documents. And this is despite the fact that Shikotan is located in the same latitude as the city of Sochi and Anapa.

Kunashir, Cape Stolbchaty

Climate of the Kuril Islands

Within the area under consideration, a temperate maritime climate prevails, which can be called cool rather than warm. The main impact on climatic conditions exert baric systems, which are usually formed above northern part the Pacific Ocean, the cold Kuril Current, as well as Sea of ​​Okhotsk. The southern part of the archipelago is covered by monsoon atmospheric flows, for example, the Asian winter anticyclone also dominates there.

Shikotan Island

It should be noted that the weather on the Kuril Islands is quite changeable. The landscapes of the local latitudes are characterized by less heat supply than the territories of the corresponding latitudes, but in the center of the mainland. The average minus temperature in winter is the same for each island included in the chain, and ranges from -5 to -7 degrees. In winter, prolonged heavy snowfalls, thaws, increased cloudiness and blizzards often occur. In summer, temperature indicators vary from +10 to +16 degrees. The further south the island is located, the higher the air temperature will be.

The main factor influencing the summer temperature index is the nature of the hydrological circulation characteristic of coastal waters.

If we consider the components of the average and northern group islands, it is worth noting that the temperature of coastal waters there does not rise above five to six degrees, therefore, these territories are characterized by the lowest summer rate for the Northern Hemisphere. During the year, the archipelago receives from 1000 to 1400 mm of precipitation, which is evenly distributed over the seasons. You can also talk about everywhere excess moisture. On the southern side of the chain in summer, the humidity index exceeds ninety percent, due to which fogs dense in consistency appear. If you carefully consider the latitudes where the Kuril Islands are located on the map, we can conclude that the area is particularly difficult. It is regularly affected by cyclones, which are accompanied by excessive precipitation, and can also cause typhoons.

Simushir Island

Population

Territories are populated unevenly. The population of the Kuril Islands lives year-round in Shikotan, Kunashir, Paramushir and Iturup. There is no permanent population in other parts of the archipelago. In total, there are nineteen settlements, including sixteen villages, an urban-type settlement called Yuzhno-Kurilsk, as well as two large cities, including Kurilsk and Severo-Kurilsk. In 1989, the maximum value of the population was recorded, which was equal to 30,000 people.

The high population of the territories during the Soviet Union is explained by subsidies from those regions, as well as big amount military personnel who inhabited the islands of Simushir, Shumshu and so on.

By 2010, the rate had dropped significantly. In total, 18,700 people occupied the territory, of which approximately 6,100 live within the Kuril District, and 10,300 in the South Kuril District. The rest of the people occupied the local villages. The population has decreased significantly due to the remoteness of the archipelago, but the climate of the Kuril Islands also played its role, which not every person can withstand.

Uninhabited Ushishir Islands

How to get to the Kuriles

The easiest way to get here is by air. local airport called "Iturup" is considered one of the most important aviation facilities built from scratch in post-Soviet times. It was built and equipped in accordance with modern technological requirements, so it was given the status of an international air point. The first flight, which later became regular, was accepted on September 22, 2014. They became the plane of the company "Aurora", which arrived from Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. There were fifty passengers on board. This event was negatively perceived by the Japanese authorities, who attribute this territory to their country. Therefore, disputes about who owns the Kuril Islands continue to this day.

It is worth noting that a trip to the Kuriles must be planned in advance. Route planning should take into account that the total archipelago includes fifty-six islands, among which Iturup and Kunashir are the most popular. There are two ways to get to them. It is most convenient to fly by plane, but tickets should be bought a few months before the scheduled date, since there are quite a few flights. The second way is a trip by boat from the port of Korsakov. The journey takes from 18 to 24 hours, but you can buy a ticket only at the box office of the Kuriles or Sakhalin, that is, online sales are not provided.

Urup is desert island volcanic origin

Interesting Facts

Despite all the difficulties, life on the Kuril Islands is developing and growing. The history of the territories began in 1643, when several sections of the archipelago were surveyed by Marten Fries and his team. The first information received by Russian scientists dates back to 1697, when V. Atlasov's campaign across Kamchatka took place. All subsequent expeditions led by I. Kozyrevsky, F. Luzhin, M. Shpanberg and others were aimed at systematic development of the area. After it became clear who discovered the Kuril Islands, you can familiarize yourself with several interesting facts associated with the archipelago:

1. To get to the Kuriles, a tourist will need a special permit, since the zone is a border zone. This document is issued exclusively by the border department of the FSB of Sakhalinsk. To do this, you will need to come to the institution at 9:30 - 10:30 with your passport. The permit will be ready the very next day. Therefore, the traveler will definitely stay in the city for one day, which should be taken into account when planning a trip.
2. Due to the unpredictable climate, visiting the islands, you can get stuck here for a long time, because with bad weather the airport of the Kuril Islands and their ports stop their work. Frequent obstacles are high clouds and nebula. At the same time, we are not talking about a couple of hour flight delays. The traveler should always be prepared to spend an extra week or two here.
3. All five hotels are open for guests of the Kuriles. The hotel called "Vostok" is designed for eleven rooms, "Iceberg" - three rooms, "Flagship" - seven rooms, "Iturup" - 38 rooms, "Island" - eleven rooms. Reservations must be made in advance.
4. Japanese lands can be seen from the windows of local residents, but the best view opens on Kunashir. To verify this fact, the weather must be clear.
5. The Japanese past is closely connected with these territories. Japanese cemeteries and factories remained here, the coast from the Pacific Ocean is densely lined with fragments of Japanese porcelain, which existed even before the war. Therefore, here you can often meet archaeologists or collectors.
6. It is also worth understanding that the disputed Kuril Islands, first of all, are volcanoes. Their territories consist of 160 volcanoes, of which about forty remain active.
7. local flora and the fauna is amazing. Bamboo grows here along the highways, magnolia or mulberry tree can grow near the Christmas tree. The lands are rich in berries, blueberries, lingonberries, cloudberries, princesses, redberries, Chinese magnolia vines, blueberries and so on grow abundantly here. Locals say that you can meet a bear here, especially near the Tyati Kunashir volcano.
8. Almost every local resident has a car at his disposal, but there are no gas stations in any of the settlements. Fuel is delivered inside special barrels from Vladivostok and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
9. Due to the high seismicity of the region, its territory is built up mainly with two- and three-story buildings. Houses with a height of five floors are already considered skyscrapers and a rarity.
10. Until it is decided whose Kuril Islands, the Russians living here, the duration of the vacation will be 62 days a year. Residents of the southern ridge can use visa-free regime with Japan. This opportunity is used by about 400 people per year.

The Great Kuril Arc is surrounded underwater volcanoes, some of which regularly make themselves felt. Any eruption causes a resumption of seismic activity, which provokes a “seaquake”. That's why local lands prone to frequent tsunamis. The strongest tsunami wave about 30 meters high in 1952 completely destroyed the city on the island of Paramushir called Severo-Kurilsk.

The last century was also remembered for several natural disasters. Among them, the most famous was the 1952 tsunami that occurred in Paramushir, as well as the 1994 Shikotan tsunami. Therefore, it is believed that such a beautiful nature of the Kuril Islands is also very dangerous for human life, but this does not prevent local cities from developing and the population from growing.

The mysterious Kuriles are a paradise for any romantic traveler. Inaccessibility, uninhabited, geographical isolation, active volcanoes, far from a "beach climate", avaricious information - not only do not scare away, but also increase the desire to get to the foggy, fire-breathing islands - the former military fortresses of the Japanese army, still hiding deep underground many secrets.
The Kuril arc with a narrow chain of islands, like an openwork bridge, connects two worlds - Kamchatka and Japan. The Kuriles are part of the Pacific volcanic ring. Islands - the tops of the most tall buildings volcanic ridge, protruding from the water only 1-2 km, and extending into the depths of the ocean for many kilometers.

In total, there are over 150 volcanoes on the islands, of which 39 are active. The highest of them is the Alaid volcano - 2339 m, located on the island of Atlasov. The presence of numerous thermal springs on the islands is associated with volcanic activity, some of them are curative.

Experts compare the Kuril Islands with a huge botanical garden, where representatives of various floras coexist: Japanese-Korean, Manchurian and Okhotsk-Kamchatka. Here they grow together - polar birch and thousand-year-old yew, larch with spruce and wild grapes, cedar dwarf and velvet tree, interweaving of woody vines and carpet thickets of lingonberries. Traveling around the islands, you can visit various natural areas, get from the pristine taiga to subtropical thickets, from the moss tundra to the jungle of giant grasses.
The seabed around the islands is covered with dense vegetation, in the thickets of which numerous fish, molluscs, marine animals find refuge, and crystal pure water makes it possible for lovers of underwater travel to navigate well in the jungle of sea kale, where unique finds also occur - sunken ships and Japanese military equipment- reminders of military events in the history of the Kuril archipelago.

Yuzhno-Kurilsk, Kunashir

GEOGRAPHY, WHERE THEY ARE, HOW TO GET TO
The Kuril Islands are a chain of islands between the Kamchatka Peninsula and the island of Hokkaido, separating the Sea of ​​Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean in a slightly convex arc.
The length is about 1200 km. The total area is 10.5 thousand km². To the south of them is the state border of the Russian Federation with Japan.
The islands form two parallel ridges: the Greater Kuril and the Lesser Kuril. Includes 56 islands. They are of great military-strategic and economic importance. The Kuril Islands are part of the Sakhalin region of Russia. The southern islands of the archipelago - Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and the Habomai group - are disputed by Japan, which includes them in the Hokkaido prefecture.

The Kuril Islands belong to the regions of the Far North
The climate on the islands is marine, rather severe, with cold and long winters, cool summers, and high humidity. The mainland monsoon climate undergoes significant changes here. In the southern part of the Kuril Islands, frosts in winter can reach -25 ° C, the average temperature in February is -8 ° C. In the northern part, the winter is milder, with frosts down to -16 ° C and -7 ° C in February.
In winter, the islands are affected by the Aleutian baric minimum, the effect of which weakens by June.
The average temperature in August in the southern part of the Kuril Islands is +17 °C, in the north - +10 °C.

Iturup Island, White Rocks Kuril Islands

List of KURIL ISLANDS
List of islands with an area of ​​more than 1 km² in the direction from north to south.
Name, Area, km², height, Latitude, Longitude
Great Kuril Ridge
northern group
Atlasova 150 2339 50°52" 155°34"
Shumshu 388 189 50°45" 156°21"
Paramushir 2053 1816 50°23" 155°41"
Antsiferova 7 747 50°12" 154°59"
Macanrushi 49 1169 49°46" 154°26"
Onecotan 425 1324 49°27" 154°46"
Harimkotan 68 1157 49°07" 154°32"
Chirinkotan 6 724 48°59" 153°29"
Ekarma 30 1170 48°57" 153°57"
Shiashkotan 122 934 48°49" 154°06"

middle group
Raikoke 4.6 551 48°17" 153°15"
Matua 52 1446 48°05" 153°13"
Russhua 67 948 47°45" 153°01"
Ushishir Islands 5 388 — —
Ryponkicha 1.3 121 47°32" 152°50"
Yankich 3.7 388 47°31" 152°49"
Ketoi 73 1166 47°20" 152°31"
Simushir 353 1539 46°58" 152°00"
Broughton 7 800 46°43" 150°44"
Black Brothers Islands 37,749 — —
Chirpoy 21 691 46°30" 150°55"
Brat-Chirpoev 16,749 46°28" 150°50" Kuril Islands

Southern group
Urup 1450 1426 45°54" 149°59"
Iturup 3318.8 1634 45°00" 147°53"
Kunashir 1495.24 1819 44°05" 145°59"

Small Kuril Ridge
Shikotan 264.13 412 43°48" 146°45"
Polonsky 11.57 16 43°38" 146°19"
Green 58.72 24 43°30" 146°08"
Tanfilyev 12.92 15 43°26" 145°55"
Yuri 10.32 44 43°25" 146°04"
Anuchina 2.35 33 43°22" 146°00"

volcano Atsonapuri Kuril Islands

Geological structure
The Kuril Islands are a typical ensimatic island arc at the edge of the Okhotsk plate. It sits above a subduction zone where the Pacific Plate is being swallowed up. Most of the islands are mountainous. highest height 2339 m - Atlasov Island, Alaid volcano. The Kuril Islands are located in the Pacific volcanic ring of fire in a zone of high seismic activity: out of 68 volcanoes, 36 are active, there are hot mineral springs. Large tsunamis are not uncommon. The most famous are the tsunami of November 5, 1952 in Paramushir and the Shikotan tsunami of October 5, 1994. The last major tsunami occurred on November 15, 2006 in Simushir.

South Kuril Bay, Kunashir Island

earthquakes
In Japan, an average of 1,500 earthquakes per year is recorded, i.e. 4 earthquakes per day. Most of them are associated with movement in the earth's crust (tectonics). Over 15 centuries, 223 destructive earthquakes and 2000 of medium strength were noted and described: These, however, are far from complete numbers, since earthquakes began to be recorded in Japan with special instruments only since 1888. A significant proportion of earthquakes occur in the Kuril Islands region, where they are often appear as seaquakes. Captain Snow, who hunted sea animals here for many years, at the end of the last century, repeatedly observed such phenomena. So, for example, on July 12, 1884, 4 miles west of the Srednov stones, the gusty noise and shuddering of the ship lasted about two hours with intervals of 15 minutes and a duration of 30 seconds. The waves of the sea were not noticed at that time. The water temperature was normal, about 2.25°C.
Between 1737 and 1888 16 devastating earthquakes were noted in the region of the islands, for 1915-1916. - 3 catastrophic earthquakes in the middle part of the ridge, in 1929 - 2 similar earthquakes in the north.
Sometimes these events are associated with submarine eruptions lava. The destructive impacts of earthquakes sometimes raise a huge wave (tsunami) on the sea, which is repeated several times. With colossal force, it falls on the shores, complementing the destruction from the shaking of the soil. The height of the wave can be judged, for example, from the case of the ship “Natalia”, sent by Lebedev-Lastochkin and Shelekhov under the command of the navigator Petushkov to the 18th island: “On January 8, 1780, there was a severe earthquake; the sea rose so high that the gukor (A. S.’s ship), which was in the harbor, was carried to the middle of the island ... ”(Berkh, 1823, pp. 140-141; Pozdneev, p. 11). The wave caused by the earthquake of 1737 reached a height of 50 m and hit the shore with terrible force, breaking the rocks. Several new rocks and cliffs have risen in the Second Channel. During an earthquake on Simushir in 1849, all sources of groundwater dried up, and its population was forced to move to other places.

Paramushir island, Ebeko volcano

Mendeleev volcano, Kunashir island

Mineral springs
The presence of numerous hot and highly mineralized springs on the islands is associated with volcanic activity. They are found on almost all islands, especially on Kunashir, Iturup, Ushishir, Raikok, Shikotan, Ekarma. On the first of them there are quite a few boiling springs. On others, hot keys have a temperature of 35-70 ° C. They go out to different places and have different debits.
On about. A Raikoke spring with a temperature of 44°C gushes at the foot of high cliffs and forms bath-like pools in the cracks of the hardened lava.
On about. Ushishir is a powerful boiling spring that comes out in the crater of a volcano, etc. The water of many springs is colorless, transparent, and most often contains sulfur, sometimes deposited along the edges with yellow grains. For drinking purposes, the water of most sources is unsuitable.
Some springs are considered healing and on the inhabited islands are used for healing. The gases emitted by volcanoes along fissures are often also rich in sulfurous fumes.

Devil's finger Kuril Islands

Natural resources
On the islands and coastal zone industrial reserves of non-ferrous metal ores, mercury, natural gas, and oil have been explored. On the island of Iturup, in the area of ​​the Kudryavy volcano, there is the richest mineral deposit of rhenium known in the world. Here, at the beginning of the 20th century, the Japanese mined native sulfur. The total resources of gold in the Kuril Islands are estimated at 1867 tons, silver - 9284 tons, titanium - 39.7 million tons, iron - 273 million tons. Currently, the development of minerals is not numerous.
Of all the Kuril Straits, only the Frieze Strait and the Ekaterina Strait are non-freezing navigable.

Bird's waterfall, Kunashir

Flora and fauna
Flora
Due to the large length of the islands from north to south, the flora of the Kurils is extremely different. On northern islands(Paramushir, Shumshu and others), due to the harsh climate, woody vegetation is rather scarce and is represented mainly by shrub forms (dwarf trees): alder (alder), birch, willow, mountain ash, elfin cedar (cedar). On southern islands(Iturup, Kunashir) coniferous forests grow from Sakhalin fir, Ayan spruce and Kuril larch with a large participation of broad-leaved species: curly oak, maples, elms, seven-lobed calopanax with a large number of woody vines: petiolate hydrangea, actinidia, Chinese magnolia vine, wild grapes, poisonous eastern toxicodendron, etc. In the south of Kunashir, there is the only wild-growing species of magnolia in Russia - obovate magnolia. One of the main landscape plants of the Kuriles, starting from the middle islands (Ketoi and to the south), is Kuril bamboo, which forms impenetrable thickets on mountain slopes and forest edges. Tall grasses are common on all islands due to the humid climate. Various berries are widely represented: crowberry, lingonberry, blueberry, honeysuckle and others.
There are more than 40 species of endemic plants. For example, Kavakam astragalus, island wormwood, Kuril edelweiss, found on Iturup Island; Ito and Saussurea Kuril, growing on the island of Urup.
The following plants are protected on the island of Iturup: endangered Asiatic half-flower, flowering plants mainland aralia, heart-shaped aralia, seven-lobed calopanax, Japanese kandyk, Wright's viburnum, Glen's cardiocrinum, obovate peony, Fori rhododendron, Sugeroki's holly, Gray's two-leaf, pearl marsh, wolfwort low, mountain peony, lichens glossodium japanese and stereocaulon naked, gymnosperms juniper Sargent and yew spiky, bryophyte bryoxiphium savatier and atractylocarpus alpine, growing near the volcano Baransky. On the island of Urup protected viburnum Wright, Aralia heart-shaped and plagiotium obtuse.

Alaid volcano, Atlasov Island

Fauna
A brown bear lives on Kunashir, Iturup and Paramushir, the bear was also found on Shumshu, but during a long stay on the island military base, due to its relatively small size, the bears on Shumshu were mostly knocked out. Shumshu is a connecting island between Paramushir and Kamchatka, and individual bears are now found there. Foxes and small rodents live on the islands. A large number of birds: plovers, gulls, ducks, cormorants, petrels, albatrosses, passerines, owls, falconiformes and others. Lots of bird colonies.
coastal undersea world, unlike the islands, is not only numerous, but also very diverse. Seals, sea otters, killer whales, sea lions live in coastal waters. Of great commercial importance are: fish, crabs, molluscs, squids, crustaceans, trepangs, sea cucumbers, sea ​​urchins, seaweed, whales. The seas washing the shores of Sakhalin and the Kuriles are among the most productive areas of the World Ocean.
Endemic animals (mollusks) are also present on Iturup Island: Iturup lacustrine, Iturup sharovka (Lake Reidovo), Kuril pearl mussel, Sinanodont-like kunashiriya and Iturup zatvorka are found on Dobroye Lake.
On February 10, 1984, the State nature reserve"Kuril". 84 species included in the Red Book of Russia live on its territory.

Kunashir Island, Pervukhin Bay

History of the islands
17th-18th century
The honor of discovery, exploration and initial development of the Kuril Islands belongs to Russian expeditions and colonists.

The first visit to the islands is attributed to the Dutchman Gerrits Fries, who visited Fr. Uruppu. Calling this land "Company Land" - Companys lant (Reclus, 1885, p. 565), Friese, however, did not assume that it was part of the Kuril ridge.
The remaining islands north of Uruppu to Kamchatka were discovered and described by Russian "explorers" and navigators. And the Russians discovered Uruppa for the second time at the beginning of the 18th century. Japan at that time were known only o. Kunashiri and the Malaya Kuril ridge, but they were not part of the Japanese Empire. The northernmost colony of Japan was about. Hokkaido.
The server islands of the Kuril ridge were first reported by the clerk of the Anadyr prison, the Pentecostal Vl. Atlasov, who discovered Kamchatka. In 1697, he walked along the western coast of Kamchatka to the south to the mouth of the river. Golygina and from here "I saw how there are islands at sea."
Not knowing that trade with foreigners had been prohibited in Japan since 1639, Peter I in 1702 gave the task of establishing good-neighbourly trade relations with Japan. From that time on, Russian expeditions persistently made their way south of Kamchatka in search of trade route to Japan. In 1706, the Cossack M. Nasedkin clearly saw land in the south from Cape Lopatka. According to the order of the Yakut voivode to “provide” this land, the Cossack ataman D. Antsiferov and Yesaul Ivan Kozyrevsky in 1711 went to about. Shumushu (Shumshu) and Paramusir (Paramushir), and upon their return they made a “drawing” of all the islands. To draw the southern islands, they used the stories of Japanese fishermen who were thrown out by a storm to Kamchatka and saw the southern islands.
In the campaign of 1713, Yesaul Ivan Kozyrevsky again "visited" the islands beyond the "transitions" (straits) and made a new "drawing". The surveyors Evreinov and Luzhin were surveying on the map in 1720 from Kamchatka to the Sixth Island (Simushiru). After 10 years, the brave leader of the "explorers" V. Shestakov with 25 service people visited the five northern islands. Following him, thorough work "for the sake of observation and finding a way to Japan" was carried out by Captain Spanberg, Bering's assistant on his second expedition.
During 1738-1739. Spanberg mapped and described almost all the islands. Based on his materials, they were shown on the "General Map Russian Empire» in the Academic Atlas of 1745, 40 islands under Russian names, for example, the islands of Anfinogen, Krasnogorsk, Stolbovoy, Krivoy, Osypnoy, Kozel, Brat, Sister, Olkhovy, Zeleny, etc. As a result of Spanberg’s work, the composition of the entire island range. The previously known extreme southern islands (“Company Land”, the island of “States”) were defined as components of the Kuril ridge.
For a long time before that, there was an idea of ​​some large "Land of Gama" to the east of Asia. The legend of Gama's hypothetical Land was forever dispelled.
In the same years, the Russians got acquainted with the small indigenous population of the islands - the Ainu. According to the largest Russian geographer of that time, S. Krasheninnikov, on about. Shumushu by the 40s of the 18th century. there were only 44 souls.
In 1750 he sailed to about. Shimushiru is the foreman of the First Nick Island. Storozhev. After 16 years (in 1766), foremen Nikita Chikin, Chuprov and centurion Iv. Black again tried to find out the number of all the islands and the population on them.

After the death of Chikina on about. Simushiru I. Cherny spent the winter on this island. In 1767 he reached Fr. Etorofu, and then settled on about. Uruppu. Returning to Kamchatka in the autumn of 1769, Cherny reported that on 19 islands (including Etorofu) 83 "shaggy" (Ainu) had accepted Russian citizenship.
In their actions, Chikin and Cherny were obliged to be guided by the instructions of the Bolsheretsk office: “When traveling to distant islands and back ... describe .... their size, the width of the straits, which are on the islands, animals, also rivers, lakes and fish in them. .. To visit about gold and silver ores and pearls ... offenses, taxes, robbery ... and other acts contrary to the decrees and rudeness and fornication violence, not to show, expecting the highest mercy and reward for jealousy. After some time, the Tyumen merchant Yak. Nikonov, as well as the sailors of the Protodyakonov trading company and other "explorers" delivered more accurate news about the islands.
In order to firmly and finally consolidate the islands and develop them, the chief commander of Kamchatka, Bem, proposed to build on about. Uruppu fortification, create a Russian settlement there and develop the economy. To implement this proposal and develop trade with Japan, the Yakut merchant Lebedev-Lastochkin equipped an expedition in 1775 under the command of the Siberian nobleman Antipin. The expedition ship "Nikolai" crashed near about. Uruppu. Two years later, to Antipin on about. Uruppa was sent from Okhotsk the ship "Natalia" under the command of navigator M. Petushkov.
After wintering on Uruppu, "Natalia" went to Akkesi Bay on about. Hokkaido and met a Japanese ship here. By agreement with the Japanese, Antipin and the translator, the Irkutsk townsman Shabalin, appeared in 1779 with the goods of Lebedev-Lastochkin on about. Hokkaido to Akkeshi Bay. Strictly mindful of the instructions received by Antipin that “... having met with the Japanese, act courteously, affectionately, decently ... find out what Russian goods they need“ things and what kind of things you can get from them in return, set prices and whether they would like to for mutual bargaining, to make an agreement on some island that would guide the future ... to establish peaceful relations with the Japanese, ”the merchants counted on trade that would be beneficial for both sides. But their hopes were not justified. In Akkesi, they were given the prohibition of the Japanese not only to trade on about. Hokkaido (Matsmai), but also sail to Etorofu and Kunashiri.
Since that time, the Japanese government began to oppose the Russians in the southern islands in every possible way. In 1786, it commissioned an official, Mogami Tokunai, to inspect the islands. Finding three Russians on Etorofu and interrogating them, Tokunai handed them an order: “Foreign nationals are strictly forbidden to enter Japanese territory. Therefore, I order you to return to your state as soon as possible. The movement of Russian merchants to the south for peaceful purposes was interpreted by the Japanese in a completely different way.

city ​​of Severo-Kurilsk

19th century
In 1805, a representative of the Russian-American Company, Nikolai Rezanov, who arrived in Nagasaki as the first Russian envoy, tried to resume negotiations on trade with Japan. But he also failed. However, the Japanese officials, who were not satisfied with the despotic policy of the supreme power, gave him hints that it would be nice to carry out a forceful action in these lands, which could push the situation off the ground. This was carried out on behalf of Rezanov in 1806-1807 by an expedition of two ships led by Lieutenant Khvostov and midshipman Davydov. Ships were plundered, a number of trading posts were destroyed, and a Japanese village was burned on Iturup. Later they were tried, but the attack for some time led to a serious deterioration in Russian-Japanese relations. In particular, this was the reason for the arrest of Vasily Golovnin's expedition.
The first distinction between the possessions of Russia and Japan in the Kuril Islands was made in the Shimoda Treaty of 1855.
In exchange for the right to own southern Sakhalin, Russia transferred to Japan in 1875 all the Kuril Islands.

20th century
After the defeat in 1905 in the Russo-Japanese War, Russia transferred the southern part of Sakhalin to Japan.
In February 1945, the Soviet Union promised the United States and Great Britain to start a war with Japan on the condition that Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands be returned to it.
February 2, 1946. Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on education in the territory South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands of the South Sakhalin Region as part of Khabarovsk Territory RSFSR.
November 5, 1952. A powerful tsunami hit the entire coast of the Kuriles, Paramushir suffered the most. giant wave washed away the city of Severo-Kurilsk (formerly Kasivabara). The press was forbidden to mention this catastrophe.
In 1956, the Soviet Union and Japan adopted a Joint Treaty officially ending the war between the two states and transferring Habomai and Shikotan to Japan. Signing the agreement, however, did not work out, because it came out that Japan was waiving the rights to Iturup and Kunashir, because of which the United States threatened not to give Japan the island of Okinawa.

Church of the Holy Trinity, Yuzhno-Kurilsk

The Problem of Ownership
At the end of World War II in February 1945, at the Yalta Conference of the Heads of Powers, the countries participating in the anti-Hitler coalition, an agreement was reached on the unconditional return of the southern part of Sakhalin and the transfer of the Kuril Islands Soviet Union after the victory over Japan.
On July 26, 1945, within the framework of the Potsdam Conference, the Potsdam Declaration was adopted, which limited the sovereignty of Japan to the islands of Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku. On August 8, the USSR joined the Potsdam Declaration. On August 14, Japan accepted the terms of the Declaration and on September 2, 1945, signed the Instrument of Surrender confirming these terms. But these documents did not speak directly about the transfer of the Kuril Islands to the USSR.
On August 18 - September 1, 1945, Soviet troops carried out the Kuril landing operation and occupied, among other things, the southern Kuril Islands - Urup, Iturup, Kunashir and the Lesser Kuril ridge.
In accordance with the Decree of the Presidium of the USSR Armed Forces of February 2, 1946, in these territories, after their exclusion from Japan by Memorandum No. 677 of the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces of January 29, 1946, was formed South Sakhalin Region as part of the Khabarovsk Territory of the RSFSR, which on January 2, 1947 became part of the newly formed Sakhalin Region as part of the RSFSR.
On September 8, 1951, Japan signed the San Francisco Peace Treaty, according to which it renounced "all rights, titles and claims to the Kuril Islands and to that part of Sakhalin Island and the islands adjacent to it, sovereignty over which Japan acquired under the Portsmouth Treaty of September 5, 1905 G." When discussing the San Francisco Treaty in the US Senate, a resolution was adopted containing the following clause: damage to the rights and legal foundations of Japan in these territories, as well as any provisions in favor of the USSR in relation to Japan contained in the Yalta Agreement will not be recognized. In view of the serious claims to the draft treaty, the representatives of the USSR, Poland and Czechoslovakia refused to sign it. The treaty was also not signed by Burma, the DRV, India, the DPRK, the PRC, and the MPR, which were not represented at the conference.
Japan makes territorial claims to the southern Kuril Islands Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Khabomai with total area 5175 km². These islands in Japan are called " northern territories". Japan substantiates its claims with the following arguments:
According to Article 2 of the Shimoda Treaty of 1855, these islands were included in Japan and they are the original possession of Japan.
This group of islands, according to the official position of Japan, is not included in the Kuril chain (Chishima Islands) and, having signed the act of surrender and the San Francisco Treaty, Japan did not renounce them.
The USSR did not sign the San Francisco Treaty.
However, the Shimodsky treatise is considered annulled due to the Russo-Japanese War (1905).
In 1956, the Moscow Declaration was signed, which ended the state of war and established diplomatic and consular relations between the USSR and Japan. Article 9 of the Declaration states, in part:
USSR, meeting the wishes of Japan and taking into account the interests Japanese state, agrees to the transfer of the Habomai Islands and the Shikotan Islands to Japan, however, that the actual transfer of these islands to Japan will be made after the conclusion of the Peace Treaty.
On November 14, 2004, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, on the eve of the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Japan, stated that Russia, as the successor state of the USSR, recognizes the 1956 Declaration as existing and is ready to conduct territorial negotiations with Japan on its basis.
It is noteworthy that on November 1, 2010, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev became the first Russian leader to visit the Kuril Islands. President Dmitry Medvedev then stressed that “all the islands of the Kuril chain are the territory of the Russian Federation. This is our land, and we must equip the Kuriles.” Japanese side remained uncompromising and called this visit deplorable, which in turn caused a response from the Russian Foreign Ministry, according to which there can be no changes in the status of the Kuril Islands.
Some Russian official experts, in search of a solution that could satisfy both Japan and Russia, offer very peculiar options. So, Academician K.E. Chervenko in April 2012, in an article on the possibility of a final settlement of the territorial dispute between the Russian Federation and Japan, voiced an approach in which the countries participating in the San Francisco Treaty (states that have the right to determine the international legal status South Sakhalin with adjacent islands and all the Kuril Islands) recognize the Kuriles de facto as the territory of the Russian Federation, leaving Japan the right to consider them de jure (under the terms of the above-mentioned agreement) not included in Russia.

Cape Stolbchaty, Kunashir Island

Population
The Kuril Islands are extremely unevenly populated. The population lives permanently only in Paramushir, Iturup, Kunashir and Shikotan. There is no permanent population on the other islands. At the beginning of 2010, there are 19 settlements: two cities (Severo-Kurilsk, Kurilsk), an urban-type settlement (Yuzhno-Kurilsk) and 16 villages.
The maximum value of the population was noted in 1989 and amounted to 29.5 thousand people. In Soviet times, the population of the islands was significantly higher due to high subsidies and a large number of military personnel. Thanks to the military, the islands of Shumshu, Onekotan, Simushir and others were populated.
As of 2010, the population of the islands is 18.7 thousand people, including in the Kuril urban district - 6.1 thousand people (on the only inhabited island of Iturup, also includes Urup, Simushir, etc.); in the South Kuril urban district - 10.3 thousand people. (Kunashir, Shikotan and other islands of the Lesser Kuril Ridge (Khabomai)); in the North Kuril urban district - 2.4 thousand people (on the only inhabited island of Paramushir, also includes Shumshu, Onekotan, etc.).

Onekotan Island

Economy and development
On August 3, 2006, at a meeting of the Government of the Russian Federation, the Federal Program for the Development of the Islands from 2007 to 2015 was approved, including 4 blocks: transport infrastructure, fish processing industry, social infrastructure and energy solutions. The program provides:
The allocation of funds for this program is almost 18 billion rubles, that is, 2 billion rubles a year, which is equivalent to about 300 thousand rubles for each inhabitant of the islands, which will increase the population from 19 to 30 thousand people.
The development of the fishing industry - at present, there are only two fish factories on the islands, and both are state-owned. The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation proposes to create another 20 new fish hatcheries to replenish biological resources. The federal program provides for the creation of the same number of private fish breeding plants and the reconstruction of one fish processing plant.
On the islands, it is planned to build new kindergartens, schools, hospitals, develop a transport network, including the construction of a modern all-weather airport.
The problem of electricity shortage, which is four times more expensive in the Kuril Islands than in Sakhalin, is planned to be solved through the construction of power plants operating on geothermal springs using the experience of Kamchatka and Japan.
In addition, in May 2011, the Russian authorities announced their intention to allocate an additional 16 billion rubles, thereby doubling the funding for the development program for the Kuril Islands.
In February 2011, it became known about plans to strengthen the defense of the Kuriles with an air defense brigade, as well as a mobile coastal missile system with Yakhont anti-ship missiles.

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SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND PHOTO:
Team Nomads.
Photo: Tatyana Selena, Viktor Morozov, Andrey Kapustin, Artem Demin
Russian Academy Sciences. Institute of Geography RAS. Pacific Institute of Geography FEB RAS; Editors: V. M. Kotlyakov (chairman), P. Ya. Baklanov, N. N. Komedchikov (chief editor) and others; Rep. editor-cartographer Fedorova E. Ya. Atlas of the Kuril Islands. — M.; Vladivostok: IPTs "DIK", 2009. - 516 p.
Office of Natural Resources and Conservation environment Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia for the Sakhalin Region. Report "On the state and protection of the environment of the Sakhalin region in 2002" (2003). Retrieved June 21, 2010. Archived from the original on August 23, 2011.
Sakhalin region. Official site of the governor and government of the Sakhalin region. Retrieved June 21, 2010. Archived from the original on October 7, 2006.
Makeev B. "The Kuril problem: the military aspect". World economy and international relationships, 1993, No. 1, p. 54.
Wikipedia site.
Solovyov A.I. Kuril Islands / Glavsevmorput. - Ed. 2nd. - M .: Publishing House of the Glavsevmorput, 1947. - 308 p.
Atlas of the Kuril Islands / Russian Academy of Sciences. Institute of Geography RAS. Pacific Institute of Geography FEB RAS; Editors: V. M. Kotlyakov (chairman), P. Ya. Baklanov, N. N. Komedchikov (chief editor) and others; Rep. editor-cartographer Fedorova E. Ya .. - M .; Vladivostok: IPTs "DIK", 2009. - 516 p. - 300 copies. - ISBN 978-5-89658-034-8.
http://www.kurilstour.ru/islands.shtml