Medvedev orders more weapons to Kurile Islands
MOSCOW – President Dmitry Medvedev today ordered the deployment of additional weaponry on the Kurile Islands claimed by Japan, Radio Liberty reported.
Medvedev told Russia's ministers of defense and regional development that the weapons "must be sufficient and modern to ensure the security of these islands which are an inseparable part of the Russian Federation."
His comments mark a steep sharpening of Moscow's rhetoric in the dispute with Tokyo after Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan called Medvedev's unprecedented visit to the islands in November an "unforgivable outrage."
The Kuriles have been controlled by Moscow since they were seized by Soviet troops in 1945 but their status is a major problem in Moscow-Tokyo relations.
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