TOKYO, Japan (Reuters) –Every December, 80-year-old Takashi Kawata travels to Tokyo from his home in northern Japan to participate in a rally calling for the return of the island he grew up on which is at the heart of a territorial dispute between Japan and Russia.
He is one of the 17,000 Japanese who were expelled from a string of islands in the extreme north of Japan by the Soviet Union when it laid claim to the islands more than 70 years ago.
The Habomai islets, which Kawata calls home, is almost 2,000 miles (3218km) north of Tokyo.
Historical records show Russian settlers made their way to the wind-swept islands in the 17-18th century, but Japan took control of the southern part in 1855 and expanded its reach to the entire chain 20 years later and settlers, like Kawata’s family, came to inhabit the area.
The islands are isolated and still largely under-developed and for decades has been a thorn in Japan-Russia relations. Japan says the Northern Territories is theirs and Russia says they have sovereignty over the Southern Kuriles and the row has prevented the two countries from signing a peace treaty, which means technically, they are still at war.
For former residents like Kawata, memories of life on the island are dim but desire to reclaim what was once theirs is still strong.
“I personally just want them to return the territories step by step. But I want them to hurry up because some of us are over 80 and we don’t have much time left to live,” he said.
There are a little more than 6,000 former residents left now and their average age is 81.
This year’s rally held in the heart of Tokyo was special for the former residents as it comes just weeks before Russian President Vladimir Putin is due to visit.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has expressed hope for candid talks with Putin and progress in the peace talks. But at the same time he warned just one meeting was not likely to bring results.
The two are set to meet on December 15-16 and will include a visit to western Japan where Abe’s home is located.
Political watchers say there is no quick fix to the dispute.
“I’m sure Japanese people are thinking there will be some progress regarding the peace treaty. However, I think it’s too optimistic to think that anything will be decided in the near future, such as during Prime Minister Abe’s term. The situation just isn’t at that point yet,” says Sophia University Russian Language professor Toshihiko Ueno says.
Despite the pessimism, ordinary Japanese who have no personal ties to the territorial dispute say they hope the upcoming meeting will help break the deadlock.
“The world is in confusion, so it’s hard to tell how far they can go regarding the issue. However, I’m hopeful that the thoughts of Prime Minister Abe, President Putin, and Northern Territory residents, will be communicated and shared with the Japanese people,” said university student Yohei Yamaguchi.
Putin last visited Japan in 2009 as prime minister.
He set the tone of that meeting telling reporters beforehand that he would meet then Prime Minister Taro Aso, but the time was “not ripe” for the two countries to resolve the row and that the two sides needed to “develop conditions” and “develop relations in all directions”.