Sergey Lavrov: "crossed the line of decency"

Moscow announced that it had called in Japan’s envoy after Tokyo publicly rebuked President Vladimir Putin’s trip to the disputed Kuril Islands, which Japan refers to as the Northern Territories. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters that Japan’s criticism was inappropriate and that the diplomatic meeting was meant to discuss the behavior of Japanese officials and the proper conduct of an ambassador on Russian soil. The Japanese side initially reported that its ambassador, Akira Muto, could not attend because he was either absent from Moscow or ill, but a state‑run news agency later said he recovered and would appear the following day. The episode adds to already strained Russo‑Japanese ties, which have deteriorated since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Japan’s participation in G7 sanctions against Moscow.