The history of relations between Russia and Japan began in the last years of the seventeenth century, although at the diplomatic level they were officially established only in 1992, that is, after the collapse of the USSR. There were many contradictions and conflicts between the countries, but at present, diplomatic dialogue is not interrupted at the highest level, although relations remain complicated.
First contacts between Russians and Japanese
By the middle of the seventeenth century, Russia, which had already annexed most of Siberia, came to the shores of the Sea of Okhotsk. In 1699, the expedition of the explorer Atlasov made contact with a shipwrecked Japanese named Dembei. So Russia learned about the existence of a new state to the east. Dembei was brought to the capital, after which he was appointed by Peter the Great as a Japanese language teacher at a school that opened in St. Petersburg.
Russian expeditions
As a result of numerousExpeditions collected valuable information, which was published in the essay "Description of the Alon State". Ivan Kozyrevsky gave an extended geographical description of the discovered country, main cities, traditions and customs, agricultural conditions, crops grown, soil and farming characteristics. Information was obtained through inquiries of local residents and Japanese who were in captivity, that is, from indirect sources.
Japan learned about the existence of a country in the north called Orosiya (Russia) around 1739. Russian ships approached the shores of the provinces of Awa and Rikuzen. The coins received by the population from the Russians were delivered to the government. Senior officials turned to the Dutch living in Japan, who reported the place where the coins were minted.
Russian pioneers sailed the Sea of Okhotsk and founded settlements on the territory of today's Khabarovsk Territory, but the advance did not create stable Russo-Japanese relations. Then relations between Russia and China escalated, and Japan faded into the background. This was also facilitated by its self-isolation, the poor settlement of the island of Hokkaido (due to the harsh climate, the Japanese did not seek to develop new territories), the absence of a fleet in both countries and the loss of Primorye by Russia.
First Embassy
As the Russians explored Sakhalin, Kmchatka, the Kuril and Aleutian Islands, Alaska, establishing relations with Japan became of no small importance, because the country became a direct neighbor in the FarEast. The first attempt to establish political relations between Russia and Japan was made under Catherine II - an embassy was sent with A. Laxman at the head (his ship is shown in the illustration below). The official reason was the transfer to the homeland of the Japanese, who were shipwrecked off the island of Amchitka.
The main task of the embassy (establishment of trade relations) remained unfulfilled, but the Japanese government showed compliance. Russia received the right of passage of a sea vessel to Nagasaki to continue contacts. During the expedition, valuable scientific information about the ethnography and nature of Northern Japan was collected. The embassy provoked an increase in the interest of Japanese officials and merchants in establishing trade and economic relations.
The second attempt was made under Alexander I - in 1804, Russia sent an embassy to the Land of the Rising Sun, headed by N. Rezanov. Success was not achieved. Extremely annoyed, Nikolai Rezanov ordered his officer to "scare the Sakhalin Japanese", which he took as an order to raid the settlements. This spoiled Japan's relations with Russia. The Japanese were then waiting for the start of the war.
Conflict in 1811-1813
The Golovin incident put relations between Japan and Russia on the brink of war. The conflict occurred due to the capture by the Japanese of the captain of the Russian ship, which conducted the description of the Kuril Islands, V. Golovnin, four sailors and two officers. Japan kept Russian sailors in prison for three years.
Signing Shimodskytreatise
The interest of the Russian authorities in Japan increased again in the middle of the nineteenth century, when active colonial expansion in East Asia began on the part of the European powers. The first treaty was signed in 1855. This agreement not only marked the establishment of diplomatic relations, but also determined the status of the Kuriles and Sakhalin. However, this did not prevent further skirmishes and misunderstandings between countries over territorial issues.
Signing of the Petersburg Treaty
The Petersburg treaty, signed in 1875, was more beneficial for Japan than for Russia. The exchange of the Kuriles for Sakhalin was, in essence, a cession of Russia's own territory in exchange for the legal recognition by Japan of the rights of Russians to Sakhalin, which was for the most part controlled by Russia. In addition, the Russians lost access to the Pacific Ocean and part of their positions in the development of the Sea of \u200b\u200bOkhotsk. The Russian economy also suffered, because the development of fisheries in this reservoir ceased. Unfortunately, the agreement did not solve the existing problems. Territorial disputes between Russia and Japan are still ongoing.
Russo-Japanese War and Cooperation
In the early twentieth century, international relations in general deteriorated greatly. Japan and Russia are no exception. The country began hostilities without declaring war in 1904 with an attack on the Russian fleet in Port Arthur. Russia was defeated, so it feared the continuation of the war in the future and was forced to make concessions. From the concluded agreements in the period from 1907 to 1916 Japanreceived noticeably more.
Japanese intervention in Soviet Russia
When the power of the Soviets was established in Russia, the Land of the Rising Sun did not recognize the new state. In the Civil War, the Japanese sided with the White Guard, carrying out an intervention against Russia in 1918-1922. Since 1918, Japanese troops participated in the occupation of the Far East and Siberia, took part in the battles against the Red Army and the Red partisans. Only in 1922 the troops were withdrawn from Russian territories.
Relationships in 1922-1945
Relations between Japan and Russia (from the time of the USSR) were regulated by the Beijing Treaty, concluded in 1925. At the same time, relations between the countries during this period can be characterized as neutral. In the thirties, Japan occupied Manchuria, border conflicts and provocations began.
A full-scale conflict was brewing due to territorial conflicts, border violations and Soviet assistance to China. The fighting began at the end of July 1938, but the reinforcements that arrived at the Soviet border guards made it possible to dislodge the Japanese from their positions. Another significant local conflict was the fighting at Khalkhin Gol. At first, the Japanese managed to advance, but then they were repulsed to their original positions.
In the early forties, relations between Russia and Japan remained tense due to Japanese support for Germany and Italy. The accession of the country to the "Axis" carried the threat of a new war, but Japan in those years adhered to in relation toUSSR policy of neutrality. After the defeat of Germany, the Soviet Union opposed the Land of the Rising Sun, whose expansion turned into the Pacific Ocean. The reasons were allied obligations, the desire to return territories and militarism in Japan, which threatened peace. In this confrontation, the USSR quickly won.
Relations of countries in 1945-1991
Japan signed the Instrument of Surrender back in 1945, but the peace treaty was not signed until six years later in San Francisco. According to the text of this agreement, Japan renounced the rights to the Kuril Islands, but the US Senate then adopted a unilateral resolution, which established that the signed agreements would not mean recognition of the rights to any territories by the Soviet Union.
Under Khrushchev, an attempt was made to negotiate with Japan without the participation of other states. The agreement, concluded in 1956, contributed to the improvement of relations and allowed to establish trade and economic cooperation. But the document was not a full-fledged agreement, because the issue of ownership of the Kuril Islands was not resolved.
Modern Russian-Japanese relations
The Land of the Rising Sun recognized the Russian Federation as the successor state of the USSR on January 27, 1992. After the establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and Japan, a dialogue is being maintained. At present, relations are complicated only by Tokyo's continuing unfounded claims to the Kuril Islands. Therefore, a peace treaty has not yet been concluded between the countries.contract.
Relations between Russia and Japan have been seriously affected by Tokyo's accession to the 2014 sanctions. Nevertheless, during telephone conversations, on the initiative of the Japanese side, an agreement was reached on using all available opportunities for the further development of political, economic and cultural ties between the states. The heads of both countries expressed their readiness to continue a detailed conversation on topical issues.
Cultural ties
Cultural exchanges play a special role in the development of international relations between Russia and Japan. At the beginning of last summer, the Russian Seasons project was launched in Tokyo. The country has become the first to host such a large-scale event that will acquaint Japanese society with the outstanding achievements of Russian culture. The current year 2018 has been declared the "cross" Year of Russia in Japan and the Year of Japan in Russia.
The practice of exchanges is developing, which began after the conclusion in 1986 of the Agreement on mutual visits to burial sites in the USSR and Japan. In 1991, the movement was facilitated: a visa-free regime was established between the South Kuriles and Japan. Travel can be carried out on a national passport. Exchanges involve not only ordinary citizens, but also students, museum workers, scientists, doctors.
Cooperation of countries in the economy
In 2012, the trade turnover between Russia and Japan amounted to 31 billion US dollars, in 2016 - 16.1 billion dollars. Rosstat says that most Japanese investment in the Russian economy(more than 86%) are investments in the mining and processing oil and gas industry, the rest are directed to the production of cars and spare parts (2%), logging and wood processing (3%), trade (3%).
Most investments are concentrated in Sakhalin. The Sakhalin-2 project involves the development of the Piltun-Astokhskoye and Lunskoye fields in the Sea of Okhotsk with the participation of the Japanese company Mitsubishi Motors. The joint Russian-Japanese creation of two enterprises in the Sea of Okhotsk and Eastern Siberia was announced by Rosneft in 2011. There are also plans to develop a field in the area of the Kuril Islands. Cooperation continues in the field of chemical industry and pharmaceuticals, metallurgy.
Trade and economic relations between Japan and Russia have improved after the agreement between the NSPK RF and the largest payment system in Japan to issue plastic cards, which will be accepted both in Russia and abroad. This will greatly facilitate the conduct of joint projects. Economic relations between Russia and Japan are progressively developing in all directions. Both sides recognize the potential for cooperation, which has not yet been fully realized for a number of reasons.
Relationship perspective
If you try to briefly describe the issue in general, relations between Japan and Russia today still remain complicated, because the geopolitical interests of the countries are opposite. But the dialogue continues. There are a number of points of contact and joint projects, so that inIn general, the development of Russian-Japanese relations in the future is expected to be positive.
