Russia deploys defence missile system on Kuril island near Japan

A view shows a military vehicle of the Bastion coastal missile system that went on duty on the Kuril island of Paramushir, Russia, which is one of the islands claimed by Japan and also known as the Northern Territories, in this still image taken from video released on December 5, 2022. Russian Defence Ministry/Handout via REUTERS

(Reuters) - Russia's defence ministry has said it has deployed mobile coastal defence missile systems on a northern Kuril island, part of a strategically located chain of islands that stretch between Japan and the Russian Kamchatka Peninsula.

Japan lays claim to the Russian-held southern Kuril islands, which Tokyo calls the Northern Territories, a territorial row that dates to the end of World War Two, when Soviet troops seized them from Japan.