🎙 Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova's statement on the note of protest issued to Japan on September 3 (September 18, 2026) 💬 On September 3, a note of protest was issued to the Japanese side in Moscow and Tokyo over the deployment on Kyushu of US Typhon ground-based systems designed to launch intermediate- and shorter-range missiles. The note stressed that Tokyo had once again taken this step despite repeated Russian demarches explaining our concerns about the threats posed to national security, regional peace and stability by the deployment of these weapons on the Japanese archipelago. The note emphasised that Japan’s forward deployment of these systems on its territory is unacceptable under any pretext, regardless of the duration or manner of their deployment. ☝️ The Japanese side was required to end this practice and remove the systems from its territory. The note also stressed the need for the Japanese leadership to fully recognise the outcomes of World War II, including their territorial aspects relating to the Southern Kuril Islands, and abandon its policy of remilitarisation. On September 16, during the meeting with Japanese Ambassador to Moscow Akira Muto, Deputy Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation Andrey Rudenko urged Tokyo to take the contents of the earlier note with the utmost seriousness. Our Chinese partners recently delivered a similar note to the Japanese Foreign Ministry. They, too, have expressed concern over Tokyo’s policy of remilitarisation, including the deployment of Typhon systems on the Japanese islands.