When the war of Russia against Ukraine started in 2014, Japan was the only Asian country to have imposed sanctions on Russia. As a reaction to the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Japan introduced sanctions against Russia again. Several other Asian countries showed their solidarity this time and did it too. Moreover, Japan has been supporting Ukraine with humanitarian, financial aid, and military supplies.
Such support of any country in conflict is not typical for Japan. Its anti-Russian stance refers to the Kuril Islands’ issue, as Japan officially claimed these Japanese territories to have been illegally occupied by Russia. In its turn, Russia refused to continue long-running negotiations on the issue.
The Soviet Union illegally annexed the Kuril Islands after WWII and deported 17 thousand Japanese. Thus, Japan’s support of Ukraine, fighting for its freedom against Russian invasion, is also about its own contradictions with Russia, as well as its position in the Indo-Pacific region.
Speakers:
- Sergiy Korsunsky, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Japan
- Okabe Yoshihiko, professor of Kobe Gakuin Univeristy, president of the Japanese association of Ukrainian studies
- Alina Hrytsenko, Senior Consultant National Institute for Strategic Studies
- Nataliya Butyrska, expert on East Asia
UKRAINE IN FLAMES project is created by Ukraine Crisis Media Center and NGO “Euroatlantic Course”. We are aiming at searching a loud support for Ukraine in the war started by Russia on the 24th of February 2022.
If you want to support Ukraine against Russian aggression, check the link with recommendations by Ukraine Crisis Media Center – https://uacrisis.org/en/help-ukraine.
NGO Euroatlantic Course collects donations to support Ukrainian Army and civilians – https://eac.org.ua/en/main-page/.
