TOKYO, October 15. /TASS/. Russian Ambassador to Tokyo Nikolay Nozdrev rejected Japan’s complaints over a Chinese delegation’s trip to Iturup Island, the embassy reported.

Following Wednesday's meeting between Nozdrev and Japanese Foreign Ministry’s European Affairs Bureau Director General Kimitake Nakamura, the diplomats said in a statement: "The Russian ambassador to Japan firmly rejected Tokyo’s complaints regarding <...> the visit by representatives of the Heilongjiang Provincial People's Government and business community to Iturup Island."

"The ambassador noted that practical cooperation and interregional exchanges within the framework of the comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation with Beijing will continue to grow steadily, including in the context of socioeconomic development programs in Russia’s Far East," the embassy added.

Earlier, the press service of the Sakhalin Region government reported that businesspeople from China’s Heilongjiang Province had expressed interest in developing the hotel industry and cultivating marine biological resources on the Kuril Islands. Specifically, Chinese entrepreneurs visited potential sites for tourism infrastructure construction on Iturup Island and discussed mariculture cooperation prospects. In response, the Japanese authorities lodged a protest with the Russian ambassador, who was summoned to the Foreign Ministry.