An academic who recently completed a visit to Kunashiri Island, one of the Russian-held islands claimed by Japan, says the island's infrastructure development has convinced him Japan can no longer use its economic clout to settle the territorial dispute.
His comment came after a visa-free visit to the island off Hokkaido by 46 Japanese, including government officials and academics, that started last Friday. The mission was the last planned for the current fiscal year through March.
"With infrastructure development making progress, I realized that Japan can no longer use its economic and technological power as a diplomatic card," Masao Shimojo, a history professor at Takushoku University, said at a news conference upon his return to Nemuro, Hokkaido.
"Construction companies in the state of Sakhalin were doing all the road and port construction projects," he said, adding that three new heavy machines from a South Korean conglomerate had also been brought in.