Russia has slammed the contents of documents recently listed by the U.N. on Japanese soldiers held in the Soviet Union after World War II, saying the descriptions contradict a bilateral document on the issue.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday that Japanese soldiers held in the Soviet Union were not internees unfairly captured after the war's end but rather prisoners of war lawfully detained.
The U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization earlier this month added dozens of files to its Memory of the World register, including one from Japan titled "Return to Maizuru Port — Documents Related to the Internment and Repatriation Experiences of Japanese (1945-1956)."