"The sparsely inhabited islands are strategically significant to the Kremlin as they sit at the entrance to the Sea of Okhotsk and give Russia's Pacific Fleet access to the open Pacific without passing through Japanese-controlled waters.
Putin's visit was the first trip to the islands by a Russian president since Dmitry Medvedev in 2010."
Framing: assertive ·
First seen: 2026-08-21 ·
Last seen: 2026-08-21 ·
Spread: 1 articles