By Tom Holcombe, an intern with the Lowy Institute’s International Security Program
It’s been more than 70 years since World War II ended but there is still no peace treaty between Japan and Russia. Is this about to change?
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the 1956 Joint Declaration by Japan and the then Soviet Union, in which the two agreed to continue treaty negotiations. This post-World War II relationship has been difficult, marred by Cold War tensions and an intractable territorial dispute. Now, however, the political leadership in both nations but most noticeably in Japan appear to have calculated the …read more
