Russia, locked in a decades-long territorial dispute with Tokyo over a chain of Pacific islands, accused Japan on Tuesday of growing Russophobia and orchestrating “brutal attacks” on the war in Ukraine, Reuters reported.

Soviet troops captured the islands off the northern coast of Japan right at the end of World War II. An unresolved conflict over who has sovereignty over the chain, known in Russia as the Kuril Islands and in Japan as the Northern Territories, has prevented the two sides from signing a formal peace treaty.

Japan, which has joined other allies in imposing sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, celebrates Northern Territories Day every February 7 to remind the population of its demands.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that this year’s event “was marked by a particular intensity of Russophobia,” referring to statements by officials and what she called “aggressive actions” by far-right Japanese forces near Russian missions.

“We noticed that this time baseless territorial claims regarding the South Kuril Islands are accompanied by malicious attacks on Russia in connection with the situation in Ukraine,” she said in a statement. The Russian military is present on these islands, whose population is about 20,000 people.

Zakharova, repeating Russia’s long-standing position regarding sovereignty over the islands, accused Japan of rewriting history and ignoring post-war realities. Japan’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Last month, Japan tightened sanctions against Russia after missile attacks on Ukraine, adding goods to a list of banned exports and freezing the assets of some Russian officials and organizations. This prompted Moscow to warn of an uncertain impact on its relations with Japan.

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