Japan and Russia: A Reevaluation in the Post-Soviet Era

(Hardback)

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Description

As the end of the 20th century approaches, lingering shadows of the devastating mid-century conflict witnessed in World War II are reflected in a territorial dispute between Japan and Russia over possession of the South Kurile Islands, known as the Northern Territories in Japan. For more than four decades, Kremlin leaders contended that there was no territorial problem - the 1945 Yalta Agreement resolved the issue, they claimed - but Japan doggedly insisted the islands were Japanese territory. Yet, even with the major changes that have taken place since the demise of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia and Japan have been unable to reach an agreement. Nimmo examines the attempts of the two countries and their statesmen to resolve their differences. He rpovides an in-depth analysis of Japanese efforts to regain control of the Northern Territories and explores attitudes of both Japanese and Russians at the grass roots level. The author provides an overview of the historical perspectives while giving an extended examination of changing relationships in the post-1991 era. This book should be of interest to diplomatic and military historians, scholars of Japanese and Soviet studies, and students of the contemporary Far East.

Reviews

.,."a useful introduction to the territorial dispute and an essential item for those students' reading list."-Russian Review
...a useful introduction to the territorial dispute and an essential item for those students' reading list.-Russian Review
This book offers a comprehensive and balanced history of the turbulent evolution of Russo-Japanese relations from 1855 to 1993. . . .a fine account of Russo-Japanese relations. All levels.-Choice
..."a useful introduction to the territorial dispute and an essential item for those students' reading list."-Russian Review
"This book offers a comprehensive and balanced history of the turbulent evolution of Russo-Japanese relations from 1855 to 1993. . . .a fine account of Russo-Japanese relations. All levels."-Choice

Author Bio

WILLIAM F. NIMMO teaches Japanese and Russian History at Old Dominion University and Christopher Newport University in Virginia. He lived, studied, and taught in Japan for 12 years and has conducted extensive research on political, diplomatic, military, and economic affairs of Japan in the Post-World War II era. An expert on relations between Japan and Russia, his earlier publications include Behind a Curtain of Silence: Japanese in Soviet Custody, 1945-1956 (Greenwood Press, 1988), The Occupation of Japan: The Impact of the Korean War (1990), and The Occupation of Japan: The Grass Roots (1992).