The Habomai Islands are a group of uninhabited islets (excluding the Russian guards stationed there) in the southernmost Kuril Islands. The islands have been under Soviet/Russian administration since the 1945 invasion of the Kuril Islands by the Soviet Union near the end of World War II. However, together with Iturup (Etorofu), Kunashir (Kunashiri), and Shikotan, the islands are claimed by Japan.
Etymology The English name Habomai and Russian name () are derived from the Japanese name , which itself comes from the Ainu (), which means "small island that appears when the drift ice retreats".
History
In the seventeenth century the Matsumae clan made efforts to administer the islands; by 1644 the islands had been mapped as Japanese territories.
In 1732 the islands were mapped during the Russian Great Eastern Expedition.
The Treaty of Shimoda, signed by Russia and Japan in 1855, recognised Japanese ownership of Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan, and the Habomai Islands.
The Habomai Islands were occupied by Soviet forces in the last few days of World War II. The islands were eventually annexed by the Soviet Union, which deported all the island residents to Japan. Moscow claimed the islands as part of a war-time agreement between the Allies (Yalta Agreement), which provided for the transfer of the Chishima (Kurile) Islands to the USSR in return for its participation in the Pacific War. However, Japan maintains that the Habomai Islands are not part of the Kuriles and are in fact part of Hokkaido prefecture. On May 26, 1955, the United States submitted an application for proceedings against the Soviet Union. As part of the proceedings, the United States questioned the validity of the Soviet Union's claim to the Habomai Islands.
In 1956, after difficult negotiations, the Soviet Union agreed to cede the Habomai to Japan, along with Shikotan, after the conclusion of a peace treaty between the two countries."Texts of Soviet–Japanese Statements; Peace Declaration Trade Protocol." The New York Times, page 2, October 20, 1956.Subtitle: "Moscow, October 19. (UP) – Following are the texts of a Soviet–Japanese peace declaration and of a trade protocol between the two countries, signed here today, in unofficial translation from the Russian". Quote:"...The U.S.S.R. and Japan have agreed to continue, after the establishment of normal diplomatic relations between them, negotiations for the conclusion of a peace treaty. Hereby, the U.S.S.R., in response to the desires of Japan and taking into consideration the interest of the Japanese state, agrees to hand over to Japan the Habomai and the Shikotan Islands, provided that the actual changing over to Japan of these islands will be carried out after the conclusion of a peace treaty..." As the treaty was never concluded, the islands remained under Soviet jurisdiction. However, the promise of a two-island solution (for the purpose of simplicity, the Habomai islets count as one island) has been renewed in the Soviet-Japanese, and later Russo-Japanese negotiations. Formerly home to a Japanese fishing community, the islands are now uninhabited except for the Russian border guard outpost.
List of islands IslandJapanese nameRussian nameAinu transcription(s)AreakmHighest pointmLatitude NLongitude EDistance from Cape Nosappu北方領土の姿 北方対策本部 – 内閣府 (tr. "The Northern Territories Northern Territories Headquarters – Cabinet Office Home Page") www8.cao.go.jp, Cabinet Office, accessed 19 March 2023km Shikotan si-kotan (Big village) 255 412.6 43°47' 146°44' 73.3 Spangberg channel (Habomai islands are shown below.) Oskolki todo-mosir (Steller sea lion island) 1.5 38 43°34' 146°24' Polonskogo torar-uk (Take in the strap) 11.69 25 43°37' 146°19' 45.5 Chayka rock Petsernaya Shishki Polonskogo channel Zelyony sipe-op (A place where a shoal of Chum salmon) 58.3 45 43°29' 146°09' 25.5 Vojeikov channel Demina haru-kar-kotan (Village of harvesting Cardiocrinum cordatum bulbs) 2 34 43°25' 146°10' Yuri urir (Cormorant island) 10 43°25' 146°04' 16.6 Yuri channel Anuchina aki-urir (Yuri's young brother) 5 33 43°21' 146°00' 13.7 Tanfilyeva si-so (Big bare rock) 21 15 43°26' 145°55' 7.2 Goyōmai channel Storozhevoy moi-mosir (A calm island) 0.07 11.8 43°23' 145°53' 6.0 Rifovy 0.001 3.6 43°23' 145°52' Signalny kay-ka-ra-i (Low thing above the wave) 43°23' 145°51' 3.7 Cape Nosappu, Hokkaido
See also Offshore islets of Shikotan
Notes
References
External links Habomai islet gets Russian Orthodox church The Kurile Islands