Letter: China, Russia could be readying for more conflict

Editor:

The Russians are capturing Ukrainian hostages and sending them throughout Russia, including the island of Sakhalin. Japan and Russia have a contentious relationship involving that land. Hostages sent there are likely to remain there forever or die.

Declaring war on Japan during the waning days of World War II, Russia invaded the Japanese settlement of Karafuto on Sakhalin, replacing the Japanese with Russians. Russian leader Josef Stalin told President Harry Truman that Russians would invade the Japanese island of Hokkaido. Truman told Stalin to go pound sand. About 100,000 Japanese civilians attempted escape from Sakhalin. A Soviet submarine torpedoed refugee ships.

On March 24, Russia sailed a 10-warship navy group from the Pacific Ocean to the Sea of Japan via the Tsugaru Strait between the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. The Chinese covet Taiwan, and the Russians covet Hokkaido. An attack by the Chinese and Russians on their objectives is another looming confrontation.

R. George Neiswender
Womelsdorf

Source: Berkshire mont