Russia slams Japan for planned missile drills near border

ISTANBUL

Russia lodged a formal protest Thursday with the Japanese Embassy in Moscow for Tokyo’s plans to conduct missile exercises in June near the Far Eastern borders, according to the Foreign Ministry.

A statement said the drills are expected to take place on Japan’s Hokkaido island and involve SSM-1 coastal missile systems equipped with Type-88 missiles, which have a range of up to 200 kilometers (124 miles).

Moscow condemned the exercises as “provocative military activity” and labeled them a potential threat to its national security.

“The Russian side considers such actions categorically unacceptable. Tokyo’s moves only increase tensions in Northeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region as a whole,” it said.

Russia stressed it reserves the right to take “all necessary countermeasures” to neutralize threats to its security in the region.